


Ironic Change

by Berryberryblitz



Series: Berry's Long MK/DC Books [4]
Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Angst, Animal Transformation, Cute, Cute Kaito, Death, F/M, Fear, Fish, Fluff, Friendship, Fun, Happy, Heist, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Jokes, Kaito is a merman, Kaito is adorable, Kaito needs a hug, Love, M/M, Magic, Magical gems, Mermen, Panic, Past Love, Phobia, Poor Kaito, Pranks, Regret, Sad, Shinichi is a merman, Silly kaito, Supernatural - Freeform, kaishin - Freeform, kaito is a little shit, kaito is silly, kaito is unimpressed, mer!Kaito, merKaito, merShinichi, merman, shinichi wants to help, shinkai, tragic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2020-07-03
Packaged: 2021-01-03 20:15:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 22,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21185363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Berryberryblitz/pseuds/Berryberryblitz
Summary: Kaito successfully completes a heist, however when he checks the gem in the moonlight... Things get a little fishy. Poor Kaito wishes that all of it was one big nightmare, unfortunately for him, it's real, and eventually that doesn't even matter to him anymore...This story is pre-writtenOn WATTPAD it's complete, just search up my name~





	1. Chapter 1 Returning Home

**Author's Note:**

> Pre-Written on Wattpad

It was a cloudy night, the cool autumn breeze gently blew against the white clad magician, his cape swaying as his indigo eyes took in his latest heist’s target. It was a tear shaped sapphire called The Mermaid’s Heart. The gem itself was the size of a quarter and was embedded into an elegant silver linked necklace, a far cry from the usual gaudy jewels the thief often stole. He was thankful that despite the sea themed name of the jewel, there were none of his aquatic nemesis within the heist’s vicinity, or at least ones that he knew of. If there’d been any, he didn’t want to know.

Kaito let out a soft sigh as his gaze turned towards the sky, he’d hoped that the clouds would have unveiled the moon by the end of the heist. With an annoyed click of his tongue, Kaitou Kid vanished and Kuroba Kaito was left in place of the thief. He’d have to check the gem for Pandora another night.

_ ‘I hope Aoko isn’t too mad about what I did to Nakamori-Keibu _ …’

The magician had finally caved into revealing his identity as Kaitou Kid to her several months back, it had gone much better than he had expected. She was upset with how he’d continuously lied to her, however she'd also understood why Kaito had done so. They’d tried dating once all of the secrets were revealed, but they swiftly realized that they were better off as friends. Dating one’s alleged sibling in all but blood just felt  _ weird _ .

‘ _ I've technically done worse… At least Nakamori-Keibu still has his original clothes _ …’

With a smirk lingering on his face the brunette made his way back home, hopefully he made it back without running into freak incidents that usually happened when one spent too much time around detectives.

* * *

“That really wasn’t necessary…” The magician looked over with a grin from his place halfway through his bedroom window. Aoko stood up from where she’d been sitting on his bed, her arms crossed over her chest with a half smile, half scowl on her face.

“It really was!” The magician chirped cheekily, bounding over to his friend and enveloping her into a quick hug as he lifted Aoko up off of her feet and spun her once before setting her down. “Your father always has the best reactions” Kaito added once he set her down.

Aoko huffed, a smile threatening to show on her face as she remembered what she had seen on TV. “Okay… Aoko admits that it was a  _ little  _ funny to see dad painted neon pink and covered in feathers…”

‘ _ Now that Aoko knows that Kid isn’t doing heists just to make fun of dad, it's more bearable… Its just Bakaito being his normal teasing self _ ’

The magician rolled his eyes at Aoko’s denial. “A  _ little _ funny?” He scoffed, his tone teasing as he flicked her forehead. “More like hilarious! The colour pink seems to set him off way more than the other colours I’ve tried!”

“That’s because pink is generally thought of as a girly colour, of course it'll make him angry whenever you use it! He thinks you're mocking him by using it” Aoko chastised with a shake of her head. Sometimes she couldn’t believe that Kaito was the alleged  _ Gentleman  _ Thief, he was anything but a gentleman.

‘ _ If only Dad didn’t get so twitchy whenever there’s too long of a gap between heists… I worry for him, what will he do when Kaito finally finds that stupid gem, destroys it, and then takes down the people shooting at him _ ’

“True men can pull off wearing pink perfectly!” Aoko rolled her eyes at the magician’s exclamation.

“I should go back home before dad returns now that you’re back” Aoko almost always waited for him to come back safely, making sure he wasn’t hurt was the least she could do for Kaito. “I also need to be well rested for my date with Saguru tomorrow” She giggled at how the magician’s face scrunched up in disgust.

“Ick! I still think you could do better than that Hakubastard” The magician couldn’t help but grimace in disgust, he didn’t really approve in her dating Saguru, however he also knew that the blond would at least respect her. There were much worse people she could date than a snobbish detective.

Aoko gave a small smile and shook her head. “Bakaito, Saguru is a lot better than he used to be” The girl replied, Kaito made a face. While it was true that the blond was trusted enough to be told the reasons behind Kaito being Kid, the guy still rubbed the magician the wrong way.

“I still don’t like him” Kaito huffed, crossing his arms childishly.

‘ _ Bakaito is so petty _ …’

“And you know that if you scare him away, Aoko will have fish for dinner every night.” Blue eyes gleamed mischievously at Kaito’s poorly disguised shiver, it was an odd fear to have in her opinion. It was also a good way to make sure the trickster behaved.

‘ _ Kaito has been a little easier to deal with ever since Chikage-san told me his fear of fish… Aoko can’t believe she’s never noticed before _ ’

“That’s not fair Ahoko! You  _ know _ I can’t deal with those…” The magician trailed off, a glint of fear present within indigos as he continued. “Those… _ Finny things _ …” The way he spat out the last part with pure venom laced disgust made Aoko giggle in amusement.

‘Then all you have to do is tolerate Saguru, it’s not like Aoko is asking for you two to become best friends or anything” At Kaito’s unimpressed look, she sighed. “Tolerate him, or you’ll be eating fish for the next week” Indigos widened in horror and the magician was quick to give an agreeing nod.

“Okay, okay! I won’t scare the bastard away. Why don’t you head home now before Nakamori-Keibu returns!” Aoko smirked at how Kaito swiftly ushered her out of his room.

‘ _ Looks like Aoko’s date with Saguru will go well tomorrow _ ’ 

With a happy hum, she headed out the door and walked over to her own house, being neighbours was very convenient. 


	2. Chapter 2 Playful Magician

"If you hurt Aoko, you will regret it for the rest of your miserable existence..." Kaito growled at Saguru, who in turn suppressed a shiver. The normally easygoing magician's malicious intent was truly terrifying when faced with directly, Kaito's moonlight persona may have a rule against harming others, however mentally scarring people was not something the trickster was adverse to. 

The blond swallowed before nodding. "Of course, I will do my best to care for Aoko-Chan" Saguru replied, he did not want to be a true target of the magician's rage. He'd seen what a happy Kaito was capable of, he did not want to see what would happen if he were to truly become enraged.

_'I'm not sure my sanity would survive Kuroba's full wrath_...'

Blue eyes narrowed as Aoko smacked the brunette on the head. "Aoko told you to behave! Stop trying to scare Saguru away!" She yelled, glaring at the now cowering magician.

'_And to think that a woman's ire is all that is needed to take down the great Kaitou Kid_...'

"I wasn't scaring Hakubastard!" Kaito whined from his crouching position on the ground, left hand nursing his new head injury. "I was doing my job as your honorary brother! I'm supposed to threaten the creeps who are after your fair-ack!" His words were cut off by another smack.

"Bakaito!" Saguru took a few steps back, not wanting to be within hitting range. Knowing Kaito, the magician would do his best to redirect one of Aoko's attacks towards him. "Saguru is anything but a creep" She huffed, brandishing a mop that had suddenly come out of nowhere. "He" A swing "Is" Dodge "One of the" A swipe skimmed the magician "Most gentlemanly guy" The magician back flipped over Saguru "Aoko has ever met!" Kaito grinned from his place behind the blushing blond, Aoko blinked, realising that the was pointing the mop at her date. "Aoko is so sorry Saguru" The girl gasped, her face red with embarrassment as she dropped the mop.

'_At least she could defend herself if anything happens_...'

"It is fine Aoko-Chan" Saguru gave a soft smile as he took her hand and kissed it, golden eyes looked up into blue. "It is one of your most endearing traits" He added, causing his girlfriend to blush. The blond ignored the gagging sound coming from behind him.

'_You've long overstayed your welcome Kuroba_...'

"Eww! Aoko's getting snobby detective germs!" The magician blanched before disappearing in a puff of blue smoke.

"So he's using blue smoke today..." Saguru noted as the smoke quickly dissipated, Aoko gave a small laugh.

"If he could, he'd probably use rainbow smoke bombs for everything except heists" At the blond's inquiring look, Aoko explained. "He uses only pink for heists just to make my dad angry, and Kaito once told me that when he managed to make rainbow smoke-" A small giggle escaped her lips as she continued. "The chemicals that made the rainbow smoke apparently made him really high"

'_Dear god, Kuroba is already insane enough when he's not under the influence_...'

Saguru paled as he suppressed a shiver. "I am now eternally grateful that Kuroba is smart enough not to use the rainbow smoke, no matter how appealing the colour scheme was to him" Aoko smiled and latched onto his arm as they headed towards the amusement park.

* * *

The magician watched the two teens from his perch in a maple tree, Aoko was smiling all happy while Saguru had a flustered look.

'_Hmmm... What should I do to annoy Hakuba, but not get Aoko angry with me...Ah, I know!_'

Kaito raised his left hand, letting out a whistle inaudible to human ears, with a happy coo, one of his more pigeon coloured doves landed in the palm of his hand. Aoko didn't know about any of his non-white doves, which made them perfect for discreet pranks. The one currently in his hand was named Gray.

'_And to think I was upset when that male got into their living area_... _Truly a blessing in disguise_'

He clicked his tongue a few times before sending her off, the magician watched in anticipation as Gray began to dive bomb the blond.

"Bloody hell?!?!?" Kaito silently cackled as Saguru tried to run away from the assault, he wasn't worried about Gray. Saguru was a bastard, but he was a bastard who liked birds.

* * *

"I swear! That was one of Kuroba's birds, I _know_ it was..." Saguru panted from their hiding place in a photo booth.

Aoko snickered at her boyfriend's flustered face. "No, Aoko doesn't think so, Kaito only has pure white doves for his magic tricks. Aoko has never seen him with a grey dove"

'_That sneaky little! I will get back at him'_

"Aoko-Chan, that's what he wants you to think. Kuroba isn't the sort of person to toss away an animal just because it isn't the right colour" An annoyed scowl on his face "I swear that he somehow ended up with grey doves and kept them a secret just so that he could get away with messing with people" Saguru replied with a huff.

Blue eyes blinked, understanding dawning on her face. "That _is_ something Bakaito would do..." Her gaze darkened as she continued. "I guess Bakaito is eating fish for all of next week" The blond smirked, aware of the magician's phobia. If Kaito was desperate, he could get his own food.

* * *

'_The moon is out, I guess I should check the Mermaid's Heart for Pandora_'

The magician stood by his bedroom window, extending the gem outwards to allow t to bathe in the moonlight. A sharp gasp escaped his lips when a blinding blue light emitted from the gem, blinding him. All feeling in his legs was suddenly lost as he felt himself face plant onto the floor. "Wha-" His voice was cut off when a searing pain struck his lungs, he couldn't breathe. Vision blurring, attempt after attempt he tried to take in air, only for the searing pain to worsen as his lungs refused to accept it.

'_Am I dying?_'


	3. Chapter 3 Attempted Murder?!

"There's a bright light coming from Kaito's window..." The blond narrowed his eyes as he looked up towards the magician's window, there was indeed an overly bright blue light. Saguru frowned, from his memory of the tale, the magician was looking for a gem that glowed  _ red i _ n the moonlight, not blue.

' _ An unknown magical gem _ ?'

Unease gnawed at the blond as he motioned for his girlfriend to follow him as he ran towards Kaito's house, Aoko silently agreed. They both knew that magic existed, having seen Akako attack Kaito with magic on multiple occasions. Magic could be unpredictable and scary.

' _ That idiot better be okay, especially after threatening me should I ever make Aoko-Chan cry _ '

Both teens bolted through the door, neglecting to remove their shoes in their haste. When both teen's ran into the magician's room, they both froze in shock at the sight. Kaito was laying on his back, eyes closed as he clawed at his own neck, his mouth opening and closing as if he was trying, but failing to breathe. The blond almost choked on his own spit when he noticed the indigo fish tail that seemed to have replaced Kaito's legs. Golden eyes widened in understanding when he noticed the newly made slits on the magician's neck.

' _ Kuroba's suffocating! _ '

"Aoko-Chan, fill up the tub" The detective frantically ordered, blue eyes flashed in confusion as she nodded and bolted towards the bathroom. Kaito's struggles to breathe seemed to be weakening as Saguru swiftly scooped him up into his arms before staggering towards the bathroom.

' _ Damn, the tail makes him more heavy than I'd expected him to be _ '

Aoko glanced up worriedly from the tub as the blond entered the bathroom, dumping the magician roughly into the water, thankfully the tub was one of those ridiculously large luxury ones. He may have been more rough than necessary, however he had to get the magician back using any chance given to him. "Kuroba was suffocating" Saguru replied at his girlfriend's shocked face.

' _ This is going to be interesting _ ...' 

"But how? Was he choking?" Concerned blue eyes glanced towards the motionless magician under the water.

' _ Did I just become an accomplice in murder?... I know they dislike each other... But still _ ...'

Saguru blinked, realising what it must look like to her. "Kuroba should wake up any moment now, he has gills to go with his tail" Aoko let out a relieved breath, she didn't accidentally help her boyfriend murder her best friend. 

*

"Aoko thinks Bakaito's tail is pretty" She giggled, her fear now gone. Saguru glanced at the tail and nodded in agreement.

"indeed the shade of indigo matches his eyes perfectly" A wry smile played on his lips. "Somehow, I don't think Kuroba will share our sentiments when he awakens" 

_ 'It is indeed ironic that the one who has a phobia of fish, is also the one that manages to become half fish _ ' 

"Oh!" Aoko clasped her hands over her mouth in a fit of giggles as she remembered the magician's weakness. "Kaito is going to flip out!" She laughed.

"Though Kuroba's new state of existence may be amusing..." Saguru paused, to make sure Aoko was listening. "He Can't go on like this, he's unable to breathe air and he can't live in a bathtub for the rest of his life..." The detective stated, not bothering to mention the potential danger there would be if someone took interest in the magician.

' _ He could be potentially dissected at the worst, or kept as an exotic pet for someone's aquatic collection _ ' 

The magician wouldn't be able to escape if he couldn't even breathe air.

Aoko pursed her lip in thought, her eyes lighting up after a few moments. "Akako-Chan can help! She's a master at magic, Aoko will go call her now!" Aoko exclaimed, quickly running towards the living room to sit on the couch. Saguru glanced towards the unconscious magician with a sigh.

' _ Kuroba is seriously lucky we were around to save him _ '

A chill ran down his spine as how close Kaito had been to dying finally hit him, he didn't like the magician, however he did respect him as a worthy rival. A small splashing sound snapped the blond out of his thoughts, Kaito had awakened and had sat up with his head above the water. The brunette opened his mouth to take a breath, only for the same searing pain as before to assault his lungs. Shocked indigos widened in fear as he continued to gasp. "IDIOT!" Saguru swiftly dunked the magician's head into the water, restraining the squirming magician.

' _ Has Kuroba not noticed his situation _ ?'

*

' _ He's trying to kill me _ !'

Kaito held his breath under the water as he continued to fight back against the apparently homicidal detective. For some reason he still couldn't feel his legs so he fought with his arms, unfortunately the teen could only hold his breath for so long, and the older teen had the advantage in both strength and higher ground. Kaito stopped struggling, closing his eyes in defeat as he felt his lungs give in.

_ 'I guess this is it. _ ..'

He opened his mouth as he waited for the pain, when none came he opened his eyes in wonder. After a few more moments he felt the hands restraining him slowly pull away, he cautiously looked up at Saguru, the concern on the other's face was confusing him.

' _ That isn't the look of someone trying to kill _ ...'

"Kuroba it would be wise of you to remain underwater, you are unable to breathe in air" At the magician's confused look, the blond continued. "The Mermaid's Heart turned out to be a magical gem, not Pandora, but a magical gem none the less..." Saguru trailed off, his gaze turning towards the sleek indigo tail. Kaito followed his gaze and immediately froze, mouth gaping. Kaito's shrill screech startled the detective, he'd heard the magician shriek in the face of fish before. Kaito's screech sounded nothing like it, the teen sounded almost inhuman as his panicked screeching continued as he flailed about in a panic. 


	4. Chapter 4 Mermaid's Heart

"Kuroba calm down!" The blond swiftly grabbed the flailing teen's shoulders, ignoring how he was becoming soaked. "You're not a fish, you're okay with sharks and eels right? This is the same as that" Saguru soothed, wanting to calm the brunette before he passed out in fear, or worse, had a heart attack. He'd seen other people die due to a phobia on multiple occasions. The magician suddenly stilled, blinking up at the blond in comprehension. 

' _ Kuroba managed to calm down quicker than I had expected him to _ '

Kaito opened his mouth to speak, only for a string of sharp clicking sounds to come out. Both teens froze in shock. A trilling whine escaped from Kaito, only serving to further upset the teen as he attempted to speak once more. he result was the same as before.

_ 'Dear god... Kuroba can't even speak up for himself. _ ..'

The detective's mouth went dry at the implications, the magician was completely still, indigo eyes narrowed at the matching tail. "I'm sure Koizumi-Kun will be able to fix you" The blond stated softly, genuinely feeling sorry for the brunette. Weary indigos looked up at him, a small clicking sound was the only response. Saguru closed his eyes "I'm going to check on Aoko-Chan, she's currently calling Koizumi-kun as we speak. If you need anything just ca-" He paused, cutting himself off at the deadpan glare being levelled at him "I apologise, just make some noise if you need anything" The blond quickly finished before retreating downstairs.

*

' _ Wait _ !' 

Kaito's dismayed chirp went unheard as the indigo eyed teen watched Saguru disappear. Kaito shivered, suddenly glancing around, a low trilling whine leaving his lips. He felt weird all alone, the magician looked at his tail, the indigo scales were mesmerising.

' _ I didn't think a fish tail could be so beautiful. _ ..'

He gasped, shaking his head to clear away the thought.

' _ Why would I even think that?!? It's disgusting _ !'

To stop himself from thinking about more horrifying thoughts, the brunette began to blow bubbles in the water since it was the only thing he could currently think of doing. After an unknown amount of time he stopped, letting out a trilling whine once more before tucking his tail around himself. Indigos closed as he let out a soft hum, it was comforting.

' _ I wonder when someone will come. _ ..  _ I feel lonely _ ...'

*

"Wait, you left Kuroba all alone?!" The genuine fear in the red witch's voice caused both Saguru and Aoko to take a step back. As soon as Akako had been alerted of the magician's condition, she'd rushed over as quickly as she could.

"Why are you making it sound like it was a bad thing? Kaito will just be bored without anything to mess with" Aoko asked, not understanding Akako's fear. 

The red witch shook her head in dismay as she headed up the stairs, the other two swiftly following after her. "The change may have already begun if you've left him alone..."

' _ Please don't let his affliction be what I think it is _ ...'

The three were greeted by a few happy clicks, a wide smile spreading across Kaito's face as indigos gleamed with excitement. The red witch closed her eyes. "It's too late..." Her voice was soft and filled with regret as she sat down beside the tub. The magician tilted his head curiously at her, letting out a few more clicks as he flicked some water at her.

"What do you mean by it's too late?" Saguru questioned as he observed Kaito, the teen seemed to be handling the situation well, almost too well.

"Aoko wants to know as well" Kaito's actions were concerning her, normally he would never greet Akako with such a happy smile, let alone dare to flick water at the red witch. Red eyes were glassy as Akako waved her hand, suddenly transporting Kaito's shirt onto the ground. Aoko gasped while Saguru sucked in a breath at the sight of the magician's chest. The mermaid's heart was embedded into the middle of Kaito's chest, the transition from flesh to gem was seamless.

"Kuroba- No Kaito is no longer human, and can never return to how he once was..." Akako paused as she dipped a hand into the water, the magician instantly nuzzled it with his cheek, clicking happily. At their horrified expressions she continued "Kaito can't understand us nor recognise us from before he was left alone, the one known as Kuroba Kaito is essentially dead... The absence of human company allows the Mermaid's Heart to assimilate into its target host" She pulled her hand out of the water, earning a few sad sounding clicks from the magician. "If he'd been around someone the whole time, I could have easily removed the gem. It would have shortened his lifespan by a few years, but he would have been himself..." 

*

Aoko clasped her hands over her mouth in shock, tears streaming down her cheeks, Saguru held her in a comforting embrace."Is there no way to make Kaito Human?" Her voice trembling.

' _ I don't want Bakaito to forget me. _ ..'

"There is-" Seeing how the couple immediately perked up she frowned. "You could remove the gem, but Kaito would immediately die, it's called the Mermaid's Heart for a reason... From now on you should only address him as Kaito, being called by more than one name will most likely confuse him"

*

' _ Why they sad _ ?'

Kaito let out a few loud clicks, gaining all three of the peoples attention, he cast them a toothy grin wanting to cheer them up. He liked peoples, it wasn't as lonely as before, the nuzzling from the red one had also been nice. Kaito wanted more nuzzles.

' _ Why even sadder _ ?'

Kaito let out a distressed trill as he watched the brown one bury her face into the blond one's chest, her shoulders shaking. He didn't like the sounds coming from her as the blond one seemed to pet her.

' _ Pets good? I want pets _ !'

He blew a few bubbles in annoyance, the peoples were ignoring him, instead communicating with each other instead. 

' _ They sad and ignoring me _ !'

Kaito continued to let out distressed trills, he wanted attention from the peoples, there was nothing else to do.


	5. Chapter 5 Epilogue 1

_The little peoples are here!_'

Kaito let out a long string of ecstatic clicks as he swam up towards the water's surface and did a small flip in the air before smoothly diving back underwater. He loved his home, it was so huge, sometimes he even got lost in it until he spotted one of the people through the clear wall and followed them along it until he was in at his main area. Unlike the rest of his home which was always changing and exciting, that one area was always the same, it kind of actually helped him to not get lost as often. 

Kaito blew bubbles and swam in loops, grinning as the little peoples made happy noises as they clapped their hands. The little peoples were his favourite, they never randomly got sad unlike the blond, brown, and red peoples. Instead, the little peoples were always smiling and laughing when they came to play. The smallest of the little peoples was a blond peoples while the biggest of the little peoples was brown, thus they were little blond and little brown.

'_Gimmie pets_!'

With a soft trill, Kaito swam over towards the petting area, flicking his tail to motion the little peoples to follow. The petting area allowed the little peoples to climb up and stick their hands in the water to scratch his head. Kaito adored the contact, continuous happy trills escaped fro him as their gentle hands ran through his hair.

He wished more than anything that the little peoples could hop into his home and swim around with him. It wasn't allowed, the one and only time he'd pulled the little brown peoples in the water had caused the big brown peoples to shriek and the big blond peoples to swiftly hop in. It had been scary, the little brown peoples had writhed in pain under the water. Kaito had immediately given the little brown peoples to the blond peoples, hoping that the blond could make the little peoples feel better. Kaito had watched horrified, letting out fearful trills as he watched water come out of the little peoples mouth.

He'd hidden in a little rock hole for days from guilt, not even coming out for the tasty food when called. Eventually he'd become too weak from hunger, so he just laid curled up on the sandy bottom of the hole. He vaguely remembered seeing the blond peoples with a weird mask over his face hovering outside his hiding place, and feeling himself being pulled out before waking up all healthy in a smaller empty tank. The big peoples and little peoples all smiled at him and made relieved noises.

*

"Kaito's so happy whenever Tsuki-Chan and Katsumi-Kun play with him..." Aoko whispered softly as she leaned against her husband. She could already feel the tears threatening to fall as she watched her former best friend begin a series of multiple tricks for their kids.

'_I know that Bakaito is in there, he's always had a soft spot for children and loved making people smile_'

"Of course, Kaito will always be a performer at heart" A wistful look crossed Saguru's face as Kaito gave the children one of his signature grins. "Even if he doesn't remember, his personality is the same, just with a significantly lower intelligence..." He breathed, running the fingers of his free hand through her hair.

'_It hurts seeing him like this... He was supposed to be the best magician in the world_...'

"Saguru... I don't know what we're going to do..." Her voice trembled "Kaito isn't ageing... What if bad people find out about him after we're not around anymore to protect him?" The blond sucked in a breath, closing his eyes. They couldn't guarantee that all of their descendants would protect Kaito.

"Akako once told me that once the both of us pass, she'll remove The Mermaid's Heart from Kaito as painlessly as possible. By then, he should have hopefully lived a long and happy life" Aoko nodded in understanding, the former magician seemed quite content with his life as it was, but she feared what would happen to him once they were gone.

'_At least Kaito will happily live a normal lifespan before passing... The old Bakaito would have never wanted to live forever_'

"That's very nice of her, I wish Akako-Chan visited more..." Aoko sighed, she didn't blame the red witch for rarely visiting, seeing Kaito was often painful. A sudden splash followed by two screams caused the couple to turn their attention towards them.

The sight of Kaito outside of his tank, attempting to drag himself across the floor towards them made them spring into action.

*

'_Need to make big peoples happy_!'

Kaito strained to hold his breath as he attempted to reach the big peoples, he'd noticed their sadness, but they were to far away to see his tricks. The little peoples were trying to drag him back into his home, but he was too heavy for them.

"_Oh! Big peoples are coming_!"

Despite the burning in his chest, he gave a happy trill as he felt two sets of arms wrap around him, he gave them a soft smile, nuzzling his head against the big blond peoples while reaching his hand out towards the big brown peoples. Kaito loved any sort of contact.

'_Don't understand._..'

The worried noises were confusing him, he'd been trying to bring them over to make them happy. His head was feeling dizzy, but before he could succumb to the pain in his chest, he found himself surrounded by water. With a joyful trill, he swam around in circles, flashing the peoples the biggest grin he could muster, the bigger peoples always seemed to feel a little better whenever he expressed his happiness.

'_I happy! You be happy too_!'

Kaito splashed some water at the big blond peoples, giving him a mischievous grin before swiftly bolting through a tunnel, quickly returning with a pretty shell, it matched him so it had to be pretty. With a cheeky grin, he popped his upper body above the water, offering the pretty shell to the big brown peoples.

'_Why gift make sad_?'

He tilted his head, releasing a few confused clicks as the big brown people's shoulders began to shake, water falling down her face.

'_No! No! Happy! Not sad_...'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the original end, but my wattpad readers begged for more so I wrote the sequel, it's Kaishin/Shinkai  
look up My name on wattpad, the complete story is over 20 parts and is attached to the book called 'Ironic Change'
> 
> Skip to the part after (A/N) called 'Continuation news'
> 
> I told them that they were special so that the full story would be on wattpad only~ I don't want to be a liar~ It has a happy ending
> 
> https://www.wattpad.com/763541178-ironic-change-kaishin-shinkai-6-visit-from-a-witch


	6. Continuation news

I've decided that it's been long enough, so you guys can have the full story now

All chapters are at least 1K words except for Omake

Omake take place in the past


	7. Chapter 6 Visit From A Witch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written July 26 2019  
Posted here April 3 2020

Akako closed her eyes as she leaned her forehead against the tank, the cool glass was somewhat soothing. Aoko had died peacefully in her sleep three years ago at the ripe age of 82, and now Saguru had died in a bank robbery a few weeks ago. The blond had died protecting a little girl from the robber.

Akako's lips trembled as she looked up into curious indigos, Kaito was still as young looking as he was on that fateful day. Scarlet eyes focused on the tear shaped sapphire seamlessly embedded within the merman's chest. The very source of her pain.

'_I know I promised to end this after their deaths_...'

Kaito gave her a happy smile which she returned with a weak one of her own.

'_I can't... kill him_...'

Her fingers curled around the sapphire in her left hand, it looked exactly like the one embedded in Kaito, she'd made sure of that. It had taken decades for her to infuse the gem with magic akin to that within the Mermaid's Heart. The new gem was dubbed the Mermaid's Soul and theoretically was capable of doing almost everything the Mermaid's Heart could do. The only difference between the two gems was that the Mermaid's Soul allowed the user to retain their memories and human level intelligence. The red witch had contemplated how to swiftly switch the two gems to at least allow Kaito human intelligence, however all of her trial theories had resulted in his death.

Akako looked into concerned indigos one last time before turning away, determination burning brightly within her gaze.

'_I know what I must do_'

* * *

Shinichi looked around in confusion, he could almost swear that he was supposed to be dead, the gun had been at his head and he'd heard a click before everything had ended. There was absolutely nothing surrounding him except a vast whiteness.

'_Did I survive and end up in some sort of coma dream_?'

"Kudo-Kun" Azure eyes snapped into attention when a very beautiful red haired woman suddenly appeared within the vast whiteness.

"Who are you?" He inquired, not understanding why he'd dream up such a beautiful woman. He hadn't been interested in woman since Ran. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. The sleuth didn't want to think about how both Ran and their child had died during childbirth. He'd moved on from his love, but the memory still stung.

The red haired woman took a few steps closer, Shinichi noted her weary expression. "My name is Koizumi Akako, I'm a red witch that would like to ask for your help" She breathed, this was her last chance to save Kaito. Kudo Shinichi and Kaito were kindred spirits.

'_Magic?... Well I've seen a lot of weird things in my life... I guess I could at least listen to her request_'

"How could I help you?" The sleuth questioned, he was pretty sure that a witch would be more useful than a human.

Akako pursed her lips "Kaitou Kid" Shinichi immediately perked up at the mention of his old rival, one day the snarky magician had just disappeared. He'd thought he'd died long ago since Kid wouldn't have left willingly without _some_ sort of goodbye. "Kaitou Kid lost his humanity years ago... and I've only recently created a magical gem that could possibly return his humanity at least in mind"

The brunette felt a cold numbness overtake him at the information, he couldn't believe it. "Impossible..." He breathed, Kid was someone strong willed and playful, completely untouchable:

'_Though it would explain the lack of a goodbye_...'

"It's true..." Akako breathed, meeting Shinichi's gaze "And this is where you come in..." She trailed off for a few moments before continuing. "You died, but I used my magic to save your soul and reset your body to when you were 17"

Azure eyes widened in shock as he quickly looked down at himself and realized that he truly was young again. "But why? Wouldn't Kid be old as well?"

Akako shook her head "No, he's stopped aging and has lost most of his human intelligence" A small smile appeared "But his heart, soul, and personality are the same" Both Aoko And Saguru had spoke of instances where Kaito had acted so much like himself yet so differently at the same time.

Shinichi pursed his lips, Kid had helped him out a lot in the past, without asking for much in return. He'd also been one of the few people he could match wits with and be himself around him while he'd still been Conan.

'_I want to help him, it's not like I have anything better to do since I'm apparently dead_...'

"Tell me what I need to do" Shinichi breathed, he didn't really have anything to lose.

A relieved smile appeared on her lips "His real name is Kuroba Kaito, but he only responds to Kaito now" She held out the gem "This is called the Mermaid's Soul, it will make you unable to speak nor understand humans and force you to live underwater as a merman" Shinichi felt a little uneasy but continued listening "Unlike the Mermaid's Heart within Kaito, you will retain your memories and human intelligence" She clipped two amethyst earrings onto him, one on each ear. "When you think he's ready, please use these to go to the sea. To activate the magic, just wish for the sea, one is for you to give to Kaito when he's ready" The earrings felt weird, but he was grateful that they were just small studs instead of being stuck with a dangly menace.

"Why me?" He inquired.

'_There are so many other people in the world to choose from_...'

"You're both kindred spirits" Akako replied "I waited until your actual death before contacting you since I'm sure Kaito would have thrown a fit if he found out I spirited you away from your life"

"I understand" He felt himself tremble slightly when Akako approached him with the gem.

"Please try to reawaken his humanity and good luck..." Akako breathed before everything went white. A pile of clothes was left where the red witch had last been, nothing but dust was within them.


	8. Chapter 7 Yuck, Toy, Affection

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written July 27 2019  
Posted on Wattpad August 8 2019  
Posted here April 4

'_What this be_?'

Kaito let out a few excited clicks as curious indigos looked on at the new creature that had suddenly appeared in his home. It looked like a peoples, but it also looked like him. The tail wasn't the same pretty shade as his own, but instead looked like the water, a pretty azure. He swam a few circles around it, occasionally poking it and prodding it. It was somewhat warm.

'_It be foods?'_

Kaito picked up the creature's arm and sank his teeth into it, he pulled back, face crinkling in disgust. He didn't like this new food, it wasn't soft like the normal yummy stuff the peoples gave him. He liked the yummies that just melted in his mouth, not whatever this was. He looked past the clear wall and let out a distressed trill when he saw no peoples, if there'd been peoples he could have thrown this yuck at them. He especially liked throwing yuck at the blond peoples, though he hadn't seen the blond peoples in a while.

'_The yuck warm like foods... But it yuck_!'

Kaito knew not to eat things that were not warm, the peoples always made sure his food had at least a little warmth. It stopped him from trying to eat his new toys.

'_Yuck not yuck but toy_?'

An excited grin crossed over his face as Kaito made a few happy trills. The peoples hadn't changed his yummies into yuck! They'd just given him a new toy instead. He grabbed the toy's arm and began to swim around, the toy limply trailing behind him, occasionally hitting the aquatic foliage. He liked dragging things around, it was like the toy was chasing after him.

'_Chase! Chase_!'

* * *

'**Kudo do not speak, this is a pre-sent message; I'm grateful for you deciding to try to help Kaito. The spell cast upon him became permanent when he was left alone, hopefully with interaction from someone like himself, he will regain his true sense of self... I didn't have the means to do this until recently... This is the last time you'll hear from me. Granting youth is a forbidden practice and thus I am no longer alive**'

Shinichi felt weird, he could feel the coolness of water all around him but he also felt like he was being dragged. A sudden pain in his head caused Azure eyes to snap open. The sleuth was met with eyes the most vibrant shade of indigo that he'd ever seen.

'_Is this Ki— Kaito_?'

The creature he assumed was his old rival was hovering over him, a shocked expression plastered across his face. Shinichi immediately spotted the similarity between their faces, there was no doubt that this was Kaitou Kid unmasked.

"Toy moved!" The sudden exclamation startled Shinichi, causing him to let out some sort of chirping sound. He blinked at the sound.

"Toy?" He asked, it was odd how their voices sounded the same to him despite being underwater.

Indigos widened even further as Kaito's jaw dropped in shock, Shinichi absentmindedly noted how Kaito's teeth were slightly more sharper than a human's teeth. "Toy made words!" Kaito's voice was a happy trill as he suddenly lunges at Shinichi, trapping the other in a tight hug "Love toy!" Kaito purred as he nuzzled the blushing detective's chest. "Make more words!"

'_Oh my god... Is he being serious_?'

"Kaito I'm not a toy" Shinichi replied, trying to squirm out of the other's grasp. He failed horribly since the other was more used to their body. "Please let go of me" He pleaded.

Kaito paused and blinked up at him in confusion. "Kaito toy?" He frowned, he didn't want to be a toy, toys were what the peoples gave him.

"No, we are not toys" Shinichi breathed, a small pain budding in his chest at the interaction. It hurt to see the former Kaitou Kid like this. "I Shinichi" He pointed towards himself "You Kaito" He finished, pointing towards the other.

'_He's so different_...'

"Shinichi be yuck?" Kaito asked, wrapping his arms around the other's shoulders and nuzzling his cheek. Kaito loved contact, especially snuggles, he really missed snuggles and this Shinichi didn't seem to be hurt and need to leave like the peoples did.

"Yuck?" The sleuth narrowed his eyes in confusion, it was hard to understand this new Ki— Kaito.

"Yuck" Kaito affirmed with a nod as he took Shinichi's arm and met his Azure gaze. Shinichi raised a brow in confusion before flinching back in pain when Kaito suddenly bit him. "Shinichi yuck" Kaito grimaced.

"Ow!" Shinichi yelped, clasping the injury with a hand. He then noticed a similar mark on his other arm.

'_Did he?... Did he try to eat me_?!'

Azure eyes gave Kaito an incredulous look, he hadn't expected that. "Same" Shinichi replied pointing back and forth between himself and Kaito.

* * *

'_I like! Words fun_!'

"Not toy, not yuck, not yummies" Kaito answered, eyes lighting up in realization. He could have real games of chase! This Shinichi could swim like him.

"Good—ack!" Shinichi's response was cut off when Kaito once again snuggled into his chest, he scowled in annoyance. "Stop that!" He growled, shoving Kaito away, the former thief was way too touchy for his liking.

'_Nooo! Been so long! Want snuggles_!'

"Please!" The soft pleasing tone shocked Shinichi, it could have almost been classified as a cry. "Peoples won't snuggle, only pets..." Shinichi's heart broke at the pleading tone.

"Fine, I'll give you a good hug" Shinichi soothed as he caught a stunned Kaito into a hug. His eyes stung a bit as he ran his fingers through Kaito's hair and listened to the content trills. Kaito was a physical person who'd been deprived of the contact he'd needed.

'_So happy! Happy! Happy! Happy_!'

Kaito had missed this, though he didn't really understand how, but he did. He just knew that the peoples always refused his attempts at further affections beyond pets unless forced upon them. The snuggles from the Shinichi were nice, and made him feel happy.


	9. Chapter 8 Weird Fleshy Thing, Chase

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written August 6 2019  
Posted on Wattpad August 15 2019  
Posted here April 10 2020
> 
> !!!! There Will be absolutely NO weird fishy sex in this!!!

'_He must have been so lonely_...'

Shinichi frowned at the thought of Kaito being neglected, he figured that it wasn't really intentional, but it still irked him. He'd always figured that Ki—Kaito's civilian self would be a very social person due to how the magician seemed to adore any attention given to him. It made him wonder why there were no other sea creatures with them.

"Kaito, why were you alone?" Shinichi asked softly, Kaito paused his content trilling and pulled away from the other, cocking his head slightly to the side in confusion.

"Always alone, peoples gave creatures but then took creatures away" Kaito replied, giving a small shrug. Azure eyes narrowed in thought.

'_Why would they take the creatures away_?'

"What did the creatures do?" Shinichi inquired, wondering if whatever animal that had been added to the enclosure had turned out to be dangerous to the former magician.

Kaito crinkled his nose in distaste as he crossed his arms across his chest "Squeaky creatures kept following and bumping into me" An annoyed scowl crossed over his face "Annoying"

'_Squeaky creatures?... Dolphins? That would make sense, they're very intelligent beings after all_'

Shinichi blinked "Wouldn't they be fun to play with?"

The other shook his head "No, bumping was annoying, don't like"

"I don't understand" Shinichi replied, honestly confused.

"They poke me with weird fleshy thing" Kaito grimaced before reaching down and stuffing one of his hands into his tail somewhere near the crotch area and pulled out its contents. The former sleuth's brain stuttered to a half for a few moments before he let out an exasperated half groan half laugh as he covered his face with both hands.

_'I've been here for less than a day and he's already tried to eat me and has shown me his genitals... I don't know whether to laugh or cry_'

"Kaito no" Shinichi sighed "I don't like" He added, not wanting to have to go into details explaining why. Though now that he thought about it, he was curious and would probably check himself out later, probably when Kaito was resting and unable to intrude.

"Kaito good" Kaito replied as he stuffed his private parts away. "Kaito sorry and confused" He let out a few sad chirping sounds as he hugged Shinichi, nuzzling his cheek against his own. Shinichi's shoulders sagged.

'_He really doesn't know any better... I guess as long as his dick isn't sticking out I'll allow him to hug me. Contact will do him some good if he's truly been deprived of it for so long_...'

* * *

'_The Shinichi no likes weird fleshy thing, I keep weird fleshy thing hidden. No want lose the Shinichi_'

Kaito really liked the Shinichi a lot more than the squeaky creatures and peoples, he'd already been allowed so many snuggles since finding the Shinichi. He liked how the Shinichi wasn't shoving him away like the peoples did or bumping into him rudely like the squeaky creatures.

'_Not alone, not alone_!'

"It's fine Kaito, just no pulling out—" Shinichi paused for a moment before continuing "Just no pulling out the weird fleshy thing" He finished, deciding to use the other's words for a penis for better understanding. He'd eventually teach Kaito the proper words for things once they have a better understanding between them.

Kaito nodded, he could easily do that! He didn't really like the weird fleshy thing either, it was all weird and fleshy and made him feel like he needed to warm water when touched too much. "Kaito no pull out weird fleshy thing! The Shinichi no pull out weird fleshy thing either, no want bumping into Kaito, Kaito no bump into the Shinichi" He agreed.

_'Bumping annoying, glad the Shinichi no like_'

"S-Sure" Shinichi agreed, somehow almost choking on his own spit, he really did not like that mental image and was quite pleased that Kaito seemed to be somewhat on the same page.

"The Shinichi play chase?" Azure eyes blinked in confusion.

'_Miss chase... But how I miss? First real game_...'

"Chase?" He inquired, Kaito nodded and swam a few feet away, doing a little loop.

"The Shinichi chases Kaito, Kaito escapes!" Kaito flashed a cocky smirk, indigos flashing brightly. Shinichi felt a small pang at the familiar expression.

'_Escape fun! Escape good_!'

"Of course!" He breathed in faint wonder, realizing that what Akako had said was true, Kaito still had echoes of his original self. He wondered if he could make those echoes become more than just echoes. He crossed his arms across his chest, giving the corner magician an amused smirk. "But you won't be able to escape me, I'll catch you Ki-—Kaito" He mentally frowned at the slip, the other wasn't Kid anymore.

"Kaito always escapes!" Kaito flashed a toothy grin before zipping away, Shinichi froze for a half second before taking off after him.

'_Fun! fun! fun_!'

Kaito let out a happy trill as he burst through a clump of seaweed, narrowly dodging Shinichi's grasp, and instead flicked a few shells at him.

'_Kaito no caught! Can't catch Kaito_!'

He swiftly hit the sandy ground with his tail, using the sand cover to sneak behind Shinichi, careful not to disturb the water currents too much. The sand would follow him and give away his position. "Kaito winning!" Kaito chirped happily as he gave Shinichi a quick poke in the back before darting off.

Shinichi let out a half frustrated growl as he took off after Kaito, he couldn't help the wide grin on his face. It'd been too long since he'd been able to actually chase after a real challenge.

_'Kaito sneaky, uncatchable_!'

The two continued their game of chase for hours, Shinichi always coming close to catching Kaito before the former magician somehow managed to make his escape.

A sudden ringing sound caught their attention, making them pause in their little game. Indigos flashed with excitement as Kaito swam off in the direction of the sound. "Yummy time!"

'Y_um yum! Chase made hungry_!'

Shinichi followed after Kaito, curious to know how they'd receive their food if Kaito was indeed correct about the sound's meaning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chappy was to put a block before anyone could ask for weird fishy sex between them...  
And Kaito is just so innocent in this... >^<


	10. Omake 1 Dolphins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This takes place before Shinichi joins Kaito
> 
> Featuring Hakuba, Aoko, and Kaito~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written August 6 2019  
Posted on Wattpad August 15 2019  
Posted here April 17 2020

'_Oh weird creatures_!'

Kaito swam around excitedly as he spotted the smooth grey and white creatures in the transport tank. Their weird squeaking noises were somewhat hard on his ears but if the peoples allowed him to play with these squeaky creatures, he'd put up with the squeaks.

The peoples gave nice pets, but he really just wanted to have some snuggles with them, he didn't understand why the peoples wouldn't allow snuggles. Snuggles were nice.

Kaito let out an excited trill when the transport tank was attached to his own and the barrier was removed, allowing the squeaky creatures into his home.

'_Friends_!'

The squeaky creatures were weird, they were all smooth, it felt different from both his tail and skin.

He swam around with them for a good while, chasing them and being chased in turn. It was nice having something alive to play with.

* * *

"They've been playing for hours" Aoko smiled, relieved that they've finally gotten some aquatic friends for Kaito.

"Dolphins were a perfect choice, they're highly intelligent creatures and playful as well" Saguru replied, leaning in to give Aoko a quick kiss on the cheek, it had been hard getting the proper permits. Making sure the tank was suitable was the easy part since he'd spared no expense in making sure Kaito's mind was always being stimulated.

The dolphins were also unreleasable due to being born with weakened lungs so he didn't feel as bad keeping them cooped up instead of setting them free.

'_It's such a shame... His intelligence was remarkable_...'

The fingers in his pocket cradled a velvet box.

* * *

_'No! Stop bugging me_!'

Kaito scowled as he swam away from the squeaky creatures, holding a hand to his shoulder where one of them had gotten a bit rough. It was leaking small trails of red stuff and stung a bit.

The squeaky creatures had started nudging and bumping into him roughly and trying to rub their weird fleshy things on him. Kaito didn't like that so he'd swam away, only for the squeaky creatures to get angry and become somewhat aggressive towards him.

'_Not nice! Mean squeaky creatures_!'

* * *

"Aoko, we've been together for a long time..." Saguru paused, a bright blush dusting his cheeks as he pulled out the blue velvet box. Aoko's eyes widened as she covered her mouth with her hands "Will you marry me?" Saguru asked as he opened the box to reveal a small sapphire ring, the same shade as Aoko's eyes. He'd contemplated a diamond but decided that a diamond was too generic for someone as special as Aoko.

'_I'd do anything for her_'

"NO!" The blond recoiled slightly at the sudden shout, having not expected such an extreme rejection.

"P-pardon?" Saguru stuttered.

"Not you!" Aoko gasped pointing towards the tank, the blond turned his head to look behind him and paled.

"Dear god!" He yelped as he spotted the merman being aggressively chased by the dolphins, all of which were showing a visible arousal, he hastily shoved the box into Aoko's hands before sprinting over towards Kaito's special transport tank.

'_They're trying to mate with him_!'

He began pushing the smaller tank over towards the main tank, noting Aoko's presence as she helped push. When it was close enough he removed the top lid that he'd added to prevent dust collection.

"Kaito!" Indigos immediately zoned in on Saguru then the tank before Kaito took off at a swift speed, easily clearing the walls of the main tank and landing in the transport tank.

Both humans let out a relieved breath once the lid was attached to Kaito's current tank, they didn't want to chance one of the dolphins deciding to copy Kaito. There wasn't enough room for Kaito to get enough speed and velocity to jump from the smaller tank.

"That was... Odd?" Aoko breathed, as she looked her former friend over, frowning at the newly made injuries.

Saguru nodded "Indeed, I had neglected to think about the sexual tendencies of the dolphins... Thankfully Kaito wasn't interested" Aoko crinkled her nose in disgust at the unsaid implications.

"Aoko thinks we should send the dolphins back..." Aoko states softly.

"Agreed, I don't know if they're capable of impregnating him or being impregnated by him, and I really do not wish to find out" Saguru grimaced, knowing that some fish were capable of changing genders. He thankfully couldn't see any genitalia on the merman so he wasn't sure, but there was also no way that he was going to check to make sure. There were some lines he refused to cross.

Aoko turned a little green "But they're different creatures?"

Saguru shrugged "Donkeys and horses, wolves and dogs, tigers and lions" He met her gaze "I'm not risking the chance that they're compatible enough to produce offspring"

'_It would be too weird to deal with... plus if Kaito was the alleged female in the situation he could possibly die since dolphins are too big_'

"Oh..." Aoko blushed at the mention of offspring. "Um... Aoko's answer is yes" Saguru blinked in confusion causing Aoko to roll her eyes and show him her hand, she was wearing the ring.

Golden eyes widened in shock before an elated grin plastered itself across his face as he captured Aoko in a tight embrace. "Thank you" He breathed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was weird, but funny to write


	11. Chapter 9 Shiku

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written August 11 2019  
Posted on Wattpad August 22 2019  
Posted here April 17 2020

Shinichi followed Kaito towards the far side of the aquarium, somewhat surprised to see a black haired adult male with golden eyes leaning casually against the glass. He looked to be in his early twenties.

'_So he's the one who currently maintains this aquarium? He can't be the first one, he's too young. Who was Kaito's first caretaker_?'

"Black peoples! Gives yummies!" Kaito chirped happily as he swam up to the man to accept food.

Shinichi stayed off to the side a bit to observe the interactions, the male seemed quite friendly if the way he petted Kaito on the head was of any indication. Gold eyes met azure for a second and the male smiled, moving away from Kaito to hold up a dry erase board. Kaito let out an annoyed trill at the lack of attention directed towards him.

"Akako-Chan told me about you Kudo-Kun, nod if you can read. I know that you're physically incapable of understanding human speech right now" Shinichi grinned once he'd finished reading the board and nodded, sticking his upper body above the water in an attempt to reach the board.

'_This guy could probably answer a few of my questions_'

He ignored Kaito who had latched onto him by wrapping his arms around his neck. Instead he kept his head underwater but his arms above water to write his response. "What is your name? And who was Kaito's original caretaker?" Shinichi was quite curious to know the answers.

The male smiled and wrote his reply "My name is Hakuba Shiku. Kaito's original caretakers were Hakuba Saguru his friendly rival, and Nakamori Aoko who was Kaito's childhood friend. Saguru and Aoko were my grandparents. I'll answer this as well, Akako-Chan was also a dear classmate of Kaito, Saguru, and Aoko" Shiku raised a brow when Kaito began nuzzling Shinichi's neck while letting out a soft trilling noise.

Shinichi notes the unspoken question and chuckled "Kaito's really affectionate, he's been deprived of the affection that he'd craved. Now that I'm here, he won't stop trying to snuggle with me" After handing back the whiteboard he gave Kaito a few pats on the head.

Shiku closed his eyes, his shoulders dropping before reopening his eyes to write his response. "We feared that was the case... But we couldn't really give him what he needed, he needed someone who could understand him and not drown in the process..." He stopped writing for a few moments from indecision before continuing. "Akako-Chan was supposed to kill Kaito after both of my grandparents had passed since we never knew for sure if all of their decedents would protect Kaito and not give him to some lab"

Shinichi felt his insides go cold at the admission, he wrapped his arms around Kaito's waist protectively at the thought.

'_It makes sense to have him die happy after a long life than to keep him lonely and potentially at the mercy of those with ill intentions... But still_...'

"What doing?" Kaito inquired, motioning towards the board before giving him another nuzzle to the cheek.

The azure mer smiled "I'm talking with that human, his name is Shiku"

Indigos widened "Kaito learn to talk to the Shiku?"

"Yes, I will teach you later" Kaito let out an excited trill at the answer as he released the other and began swimming in circles.

'_It's good that he's still got his curiosity from when he was a human, it should help me in teaching him_'

"What was that all about?" Shinichi smirked, realizing how off Kaito's actions would seem to those without any context.

"Kaito wanted to know what I was doing, he got excited when I promised to teach him how to talk to you with writing" Shiku nodded at the response, he and his family had tried countless times to teach Kaito a way to communicate with humans. Maybe Shinichi would do better since he could already speak with Kaito.

"That would be nice, I only wish he could have learned sooner when my grandparents were alive... They often looked so sad when visiting Kaito, often causing Kaito to do a lot of crazy things in an attempt to cheer them up" Shiku wrote.

Shinichi suddenly felt pity for Kaito's human friends. He knew that he'd be heartbroken if one of his friends were always close by but neither remembered him nor even understood him. It already hurt _him_ to see Kaito like this, and he'd only known Kaito as Kid. He couldn't even imagine the pain his transformation would have caused to those who actually _knew_ Kaito outside of his moonlight identity.

'_He was probably somewhat neglected because they had cared too much and seeing him had been too painful... It's a little ironic_... _Their care caused Kaito to be lonely_'

* * *

'_Kaito gonna learn! Gonna learn! Kaito speak to the peoples! Wait, black peoples actually be the Shiku_'

The indigo mer was so excited, he'd often wanted to talk to the peoples and the Shiku but had never been able to.

'_Kaito will learn how to demand cuddles from peoples and the Shiku_!'

He felt an extra burst of energy fill him at the thought and bolted through the seaweed patches to expel some of it. Kaito couldn't contain his happiness, his days of being lonely seemed like they were at an end. He had the Shinichi to play with, and eventually the Shiku to hopefully exchange words with.

'_No more Kaito talking to Kaito! But what if the Shinichi taken away_?'

Kaito slowed down a bit and crossed his arms in thought as he remembered how every other creature he'd been given was eventually taken away from him.

'_The Shinichi can't leave! No take away_!'

He bolted back towards where he'd left the Azure mer, fearful that the Shinichi had already been taken from him.

"Shinichi!" He called joyfully when he rounded a rock, using an extra burst of speed to ram into the other, ignoring the startled yelp as he captured him into a tight hug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shiku's name is random, don't put much thought into it~


	12. Chapter 10 Spark of Hope

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written August 21 2019  
Posted on Wattpad August 29 2019  
Posted here April 24 2020

"Gah! Kaito?!?" Shinichi gasped, after regaining the breath that the other had quite literally knocked out of him.

'_What's with him all of a sudden_?'

"The Shinichi no leave!" Kaito let out a distressed trill as he tightly wrapped his arms around Shinichi's waist. "No take the Shinichi away!" He wailed.

_'Wait, he thinks I'm going to be taken away_?'

The azure mer frowned, suddenly realizing that Kaito had probably had other creatures put into the aquarium with him in the past. Since there were currently none besides the two of them, he figured that it was a safe guess that something had happened every time to result in the other creatures being removed. Shinichi gently removed himself from the other's frantic grasp, his gaze sympathetic as he clasped the other's wrists and held him at arm's length. "I'm not leaving or going to be taken away" He couldn't help but feel sorry for Kaito. "I'm the same as you right?" At Kaito's hesitant nod, Shinichi allowed himself to smile "Then there's no reason for me to leave" He added, wanting to sooth the other's worry.

'_It's not healthy to always be afraid that everyone he can interact with will be taken away from him... But I can't really blame his caretakers can I? They probably had a few really good reasons for removing Kaito's company_'

Shinichi heard a soft whistle and looked over to see that Shiku was leaving, having left Shinichi's food on the aquarium's ledge. He was a little grateful that Shiku was polite enough to announce his exit instead of just leaving. It showed that the other did infact acknowledge the intelligence of the two mers.

* * *

"The Shinichi never leaving Kaito?" Kaito inquired, tilting his head slightly to the side in confusion. He really didn't want to be alone again, especially after he'd just met the Shinichi who could talk with him.

'_Love words, love talks, love the Shinichi_!'

Azure eyes softened as Shinichi moved a little closer to Kaito and ran his fingers through the younger's hair. Kaito kind of reminded him of a little puppy or kitten with the way he leaned into the touch.

'_Pets so nice_...'

Kaito trilled softly as Shinichi continued petting his head, the azure mer using his free hand to reach up and grab the food that had been left out. The food in question was soft feed blocks, thankfully they tasted quite good, their taste and texture was similar to fish which was sort of a relief. If they were to ever head to the sea like Koizumi-San had indicated, they'd need a proper food source and fish would be an easy one.

"Kaito?" Indigos curiously looked up into azure. "I'm not the Shinichi, I'm just Shinichi it's my name, not what I am" A small, confused frown made its way onto Kaito's face.

'_So confused_...'

"Shinichi not a Shinichi... Kaito not a Kaito..." The indigo mer paused in thought "What are Kaito and Shinichi?" He didn't really understand, he'd always been called Kaito, so that what he thought he was. If he wasn't a Kaito, and Shinichi wasn't a Shinichi he wasn't sure what they were.

'_Though... If Kaito and Shinichi same, then Shinichi would be Kaito too or Kaito be Shinichi too... This makes head hurt_...'

"We are a myth—" Shinichi cit himself off, not wanting to have to explain why they shouldn't exist despite the fact that they _did_ actually exist. "We are mermans, and Shiku is a human" He replied, it was a little weird to say since he'd never believed in the supernatural until now.

"Humans have legs, Mermans have tails?" Kaito's voice was soft as he asked, indigos directed towards the ground. Shinichi raised a brow at the odd action.

"Yes, that's exactly right, how did you know?" Kaito gave a small shrug in response.

"... Was Kaito..." Kaito trailed off, a little unsure if he wanted to continue or not "A human?" He'd often had weird sights when resting, of a world that completely confused him. It was a scary world with lots of people—Humans walking on their weird legs. Lots of black, white, and red filled those sights. It was just plain confusing! And it always left him feeling extremely lonely whenever he roused from his resting. Occasionally his eyes even stung and he felt like he wanted to curl up as small as he could.

'_Don't understand_...'

Azure eyes blinked in surprise at the comment, he hadn't been expecting a conversation like this just yet. "Yes, we were both humans" Shinichi breathed, trying to decipher Kaito's mood. For some reason the other looked oddly distraught. "Do you remember anything...?" He asked, hoping that the answer would be positive.

"When Kaito rests, Kaito sees weird sights of Kaito as a peo—Human... Those sights confuse me" Kaito murmured softly.

"Dreams? Kaito when you see those 'sights' you're sleeping right?" Shinichi quickly inquired before adding more clarification "You know like eyes closed and laying down? Those are dreams" Kaito pursed his lips in thought.

_'So Kaito has been dreaming_?'

"Dreams real?" The indigo mer asked, a little afraid of the answer. He didn't like seeing those scary things, sometimes he felt lots of pain in those dreams before they ended with red.

Shinichi ruffled Kaito's hair a bit to sooth him "Sometimes, but sometimes they're not real" Kaito crosses his arms with a huff, he really didn't like these dream things, why could they just be simple? How was he supposed to know when a dream was real? Though, he really didn't want any of them to be real. Scary was bad, he didn't want more scary.

"Confusing" Kaito whined.

* * *

Shinichi smiled wryly at the pouting mer, it was a little encouraging that Kaito had dreams about his time as a human.

'_Maybe he's not as lost as everyone thought he was_?'

Hope simmered within his chest, he really hoped that the lack of proper communication with Kaito was what made everything so much more dreary. After all, Kaito had been unable to share his dreams or even ask proper questions.


	13. Chapter 11 Pain is Good?!?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written August 28 2019  
Posted on Wattpad September 5 2019  
Posted here May 1 2020

"Can you tell me whenever you have a weird dream?" Shinichi inquired, hopefully his presence managed to trigger more dreams, and with those he could help Kaito understand them.

'_If I can explain the things he sees in his dreams, maybe his memory would also start returning_'

Indigos dulled slightly as Kaito pursed his lip, he really didn't want to. The less he thought about scary things, the better. "No need, dream be dream, not present" He replied as he picked up a shiny blue shell and fiddled with it.

Azures narrowed, having not expected the simple yet complex response. "I thought you were excited to learn a ton of new things?" Shinichi asked, studying Kaito's expression, it seemed different from the previously childish one he often had. He seemed almost fearful.

Kaito paused in his fiddling with the shell, head lowering as he rested the shell on his tail. "Kaito doesn't like scary..." He let out a low fearful trill, the shell falling down into the sand as fearful indigos met azure "Please don't make me think about the scary" He pleaded, a small shiver going through his frame.

"Scary?" Shinichi paused in thought "What do you mean by scary?"

"There's lot of red, loudness, white, and lights" Kaito replied softly "Pain... So much pain... Kaito doesn't like the hurting" He added, wrapping both his arms and tail around himself protectively. He felt safer all wrapped up.

'..._Does he remember parts of being Kid? I do remember that there was a lot of talk about a group of people trying to kill him_...'

Shinichi frowned at the thought of Kaito being scared of his own memories, he'd always imagined the person behind Kaitou Kid to be more put together. Yet, Kaito wasn't really the person behind Kaitou Kid right now was he? He was just a shadow of his old self right now so of course he'd fear the memories, knowing Kid, they were chaotic and confusing. "Pain isn't always bad" Shinichi offered as he moved to give Kaito a reassuring hug, only to blink in confusion when Kaito moved a little bit away from him.

'_He actually refused contact? I thought he loved contact'_

"Liar" Kaito huffed, indigos narrowed "Pain bad, always bad" He couldn't believe that Shinichi was telling him that pain could be good, Shinichi was supposed to be nice! Nice didn't include pain.

"Normally yes" Shinichi gave a small smile "But Pain can teach us good things"

* * *

'_Shinichi lying... Why he lie to Kaito_?'

Kaito crosses his arms "Don't believe you, Shinichi want Kaito scared" He didn't understand why Shinichi wanted him scared, but it was the only explanation. Pain couldn't be good, it hurt a lot and was scary, nothing scary had ever been good. The little reddish pinchy things had been scary, yet he'd approached them only to be met with pain. The little multi-limbed creature had been scary yet harmless at first, until one day it'd decided to squeeze him really hard until the big blond peop—Human had done something to it, making the water turn a scary red.

Shinichi let out an exasperated sigh "No Kaito, I don't want you to be scared. I want you to talk about your dreams so that you can understand them and eventually not be afraid" He soothed, mentally reminding himself to not become annoyed with the other. It wasn't Kaito's fault that things were like this. Well maybe it was, he did steal a magical gem after all, so at least some of it could be blamed on him.

Indigos blinked, Kaito tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Talking about scary and pain make less scary?" He frowned "Pain still can't teach"

'_Shinichi smart, but Kaito smarter_!'

Shinichi grinned "Pain is actually a good teacher. If something hurts when you do something, you usually don't do it again" A small pout drew itself up onto Kaito's face as the indigo mer remembered how he'd stayed away from those weird pinchy things after they hurt him. Seeing Kaito's expression, Shinichi continued "Plus, emotional pain helps you to understand others"

Kaito raised a brow "Emotional Pain?" He didn't really understand what Shinichi meant by emotional pain.

"You know how you were sad being all alone?"Shinichi asked, at Kaito's nod he smiled before continuing "You wouldn't want someone else to be alone because you know how sad it made you right?"

"I guess..." Kaito admitted, picking the shell back up to fiddle with it.

'_Before Shinichi was here it was lonely_...'

"That's how pain can teach things, so I really think that it would be a good idea for you to share any future dreams you have" Shinichi soothed as he leaned closer to give Kaito a few encouraging pats on the head. He didn't like seeing Kaito upset and either pets or cuddling were a good way to fix that. Kaito leaned in happily towards the touch, letting out a soft, happy trill.

'_Love pets... Shinichi always give good pets_...'

"Wait!" Kaito suddenly shook his head and moved a bit away from Shinichi.

"What's wrong?" The older inquired, this new Kaito wasn't usually one to ignore being pet.

"Umm..." Kaito gave a small smile as he reached up to give Shinichi a few pets "Kaito always getting pets... But Shinichi deserves pets too!" He chirped.

Shinichi felt a little bit of warmth bloom in his chest, he couldn't help but think that Kaito was just being plain adorable. "Thank you Kaito" He replied, leaning into the touch, it felt weird to be pet by someone, but it made Kaito happy so he figured that it'd be fine. He'd just hold it against Kaito once he got his memories back.

'_Shinichi good! Deserves pets more than Kaito! Kaito will make sure Shinichi rewarded_!'

Kaito flashed a grin "Paying back favours" he replied with a soft chirp.

Shinichi gave a small smile in return, feeling slightly nostalgic at the mention of favours between them. He wondered if the other subconsciously remembered that.


	14. Omake 2&3 Yuck Toss, Eating Bad Items

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written September 8 2019  
Posted here May 1 2020

** Omake 2: Yuck Toss **   
**Time: Before Omake 1**

Kaito beamed, letting out excited chirps and trills as the blond peoples approached the feeding area. It looked like the blond peoples was carrying a different yummy than usual. Kaito loved new yummys, they were just so new and yummy. He flashed the blond peoples a happy grin when the blond peoples reached the edge of the tank.

'_Yummy, yummy! New yummys!_'

He took in a breath before popping his head up above the water level and held out both hands expectantly. The blond peoples made an amused sound before dropping some different textured food blocks into Kaito's hands. They were a few shades darker than they normally were.

'_Yay, yay_'

Once he got hold of his new food, Kaito swiftly retreated under the water line, trilling happily as he stuffed the new yummys into his mouth. A moment after the food touched his tongue, a scowl crossed over Kaito's face as he spat the yuck out. Indigos glared at the floating yuck. This wasn't a yummy! He'd been expecting a brand new yummy, not this icky yuck!

'_Not nice! Mean blond peoples!_'

Kaito frowned, the blond peoples had tricked him! He quickly snatched the floating yuck into his hands and surfaced the water. Indigos gleamed, a mischievous grin on his face as he took aim at the retreating blond peoples and flung the soggy projectile.

* * *

The sudden impact of a soggy mass against the back of his head caused Saguru to pause in his steps. He slowly brought his hand to the back of his head and cringed when he looked at the sample in his head.

'_Why does he always insist in flinging things he doesn't like at me?'_

Despite himself, a small nostalgic smile spread across his lips, the impact had felt similar to that of Kid's dye bombs. Something that he hadn't experienced in years. Gold glanced back at the former magician who seemed to be quite smug about his success. He let out a small sigh "I can't even muster up even the slightest bit of annoyance from that..." He breathed. The action was so 'Kaito' that it only served to remind him of the past.

'_I would have much rather watch helplessly as he jumps around dodging bullets like a fool at night and have him tease me all day than to watch him like this_...'

Saguru shook his head to clear his thoughts before wiping his eyes feeling bitter.

'_Back then I never would have imagined that I'd miss those days._..'

♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪

** Omake 3: Eating Bad Items **   
**Time: Before Omake 1**

Saguru tossed a small red rubber ball into the tank, he'd heard of many marine animals playing with balls so he figured that he might as well see if Kaito would like it. Any sort of socialisation or mental activity was good for Kaito.

'_If only he wasn't so scared of fish, then he could have played with them all day long_...'

He had a wry smile as he thought about Kaito's main food source. In actuality he was just having fish ground up and fed to Kaito. He let out a small snicker as he realised that the old Kaito would have thrown a sub-atomic fit if he'd found out. His smile quickly faded. That Kaito was gone.

A startled trill cut through his train of thoughts, gold quickly shifted towards the direction of the sound's origin. His breath caught when he noticed that Kaito was flailing while desperately grasping at his neck. He hurried over in confusion before horror dawned upon him. The ball was nowhere in sight. The ball was also small enough to fit into Kaito's mouth. Kaito had tried to eat the stupid thing and was now choking.

'_Dear god he's as bad as a toddler!_'

The blond swiftly put on his respirator and dived into the water, swimming over towards the stupid idiot. He easily restrained Kaito, the other quickly stilling when grabbed. Saguru smirked at how odd Kaito's instincts were. He quickly opened Kaito's mouth and popped the rubber ball with his pocket knife before swiftly pulling his hand away. He hadn't wanted Kaito to accidentally bite the knife. He watched as Kaito made coughing motions before the plastic was expelled.

'_I should train him to only eat food._..'

He inwardly winced at the thought of 'training' Kaito, it wasn't right. Though it was also necessary for his survival.


	15. Chapter 12 Seaweed Bed, Talking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written September 7 2019  
Posted on Wattpad September 12 2019  
Posted here May 8 2020

Sleeping to say the least had been interesting, instead of a nice fluffy bed, blanket and pillow, he had slept on a soft pile of living seaweed. The living seaweed had been tightly woven together in a strategic way, allowing the plant life to both not die and stay grounded to the bottom of the tank. The design had actually impressed Shinichi, further boosting his belief that the Kaito that he'd once known wasn't as lost as he'd initially believed. Kaitou Kid had always been a good problem solver with his sharp mind, Shinichi just had to help bring that mind back.

He'd also learned of the location that was sort of like the equivalent of a bathroom for them, it was actually kind of neat in his opinion. There was this far off tunnel that he needed to swim through that led to a door that needed Shinichi to press a button to open. Through that door there was a narrow but long room where he was to swiftly do his business then bolt out through the door before it touched him. The dirtied water would then be sucked out, cleaned, then replaced with clean water. It had been a relief to know that they weren't going to have to live in soiled water like real fish. Though when they went to the ocean they'd basically be doing just that, he'd just decided to just not think about it too much, after all humans swam in water filled with animal droppings all the time. He'd be fine if he just vacated the area after doing his business.

"Shinichi sleep well?" Shinichi glanced over from where he'd been lounging on his seaweed bed and gave Kaito a small smile.

"Yeah, the seaweed was actually quite comfortable. Thank you for helping me set it up" Kaito grinned proudly at the praise, happy that he'd been able to help the other. Realising this Shinichi smirked.

'_Of course he's proud of himself, he used to be on the borderline of being as vain as a cat_'

"It was really fun to think up the idea" Indigos gleamed "I was getting really tired of laying on the bottom or having the dead seaweed float away as I slept" His grin widened "So I tried sleeping on living seaweed but kept getting tangled up" Shinichi nodded as Kaito trailed off.

"So you decided to purposely tangle it beforehand right?" Shinichi replied, a small smile on his lips as he imagined the other trapped in a tangle of seaweed. If Kaito had been human it wouldn't have been as funny since then he would have drowned, but since he couldn't drown, it was an amusing thought. The former elusive thief, brought down by seaweed. Though that may have been his petty need for getting even talking.

'_When Kaito is back to normal, I'm going to lord his actions over him for as long as I can_'

Kaito nodded, looking leased with the other's deduction "Yup! Plus the big blond peo-Human didn't seem happy whenever he added in more seaweed" The indigo mer replied, frowning a bit when he once again remembered that it'd been a while since he'd seen him.

Using what he knew, Shinichi realised that Kaito was talking about Hakuba Saguru "Yeah, I figured that it'd be annoying for Hakuba to keep having to replace the seaweed every day or so" He replied, refraining from adding the 'San' from his name. He didn't want to confuse Kaito and there was no need for such things just yet.

'_It's still odd to think that someone as stuck up as Hakuba-kun could have befriended Kaito'_

* * *

'_That sounds familiar!_'

Kaito perked up at the somewhat familiar name, he felt like he'd heard that name before. He just didn't know where. He frowned, was that name associated with the time he'd apparently once been human? He wasn't sure, normally those thoughts were scary and made him feel scared. The name Hakuba had the opposite effect on him so it couldn't be true. Indigos met azure "Who is this Hakuba?" He inquired, Shinichi must know because he mentioned that name first.

Shinichi pursed his lip, he wasn't sure if Kaito was ready for that conversation. Did the other even understand death? or was that another bit of knowledge that was stripped away from him as well? He let out a sigh, Kaito was most likely still persistent and probably wouldn't let the subject drop either way "Hakuba is the name of the person who you were talking about" He gave a small smile "He was one of your best friends when you were a human" He added.

'_Friend? I know what that means... Friend is an important person to me_'

Indigos narrowed "But we can't understand each other..." Shinichi nodded, having expected the question.

"True, with you as a merman you guys couldn't understand each other" Shinichi paused for a moment before continuing "But when you were a human like him, you two could understand each other like how you can currently understand me" He finished.

'_So we could talk to each other? I like talking, that's not fair_'

Kaito suddenly felt a little sad at the realisation. He wondered if that was why Hakuba often seemed sad when he visited him. They'd apparently been friends that had talked to each other, until Kaito apparently forgot about him and lost the ability to communicate with him. He glanced at the azure mer, he'd be heartbroken if that happened between him and Shinichi yet the other hadn't even been around that long "When Hakuba visits again I want to say sorry, can you help me?" He asked, wanting to do his best to make Hakuba happy. Kaito had probably hurt him a lot by accident. He didn't like that thought.

'_I don't like seeing him hurt_'

Shinichi visibly grimaced at the request, if only he'd arrived a week or so ago, maybe then Hakuba would have died a little more happily. "I'm sorry Kaito, Hakuba died a few days ago..." Shinichi sighed, hoping that he wouldn't have to explain to Kaito what death meant. The fact that Kaito's speech had improved quite a bit gave him some hope that he could understand.


	16. Chapter 13 Regrets, Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written September 8 2019  
Posted on Wattpad September 19 2019  
Posted here May 15 2020

Indigos dimmed slightly as a small frown creased Kaito's lips at the new information. He knew what death meant, it meant that he'd never see the blond ever again. He'd lost his chance to try and make things right with him. "Do you know how he died?" Kaito inquired, his voice soft. The thought of Hakuba being dead kinda hurt a lot more than he'd have expected it to.

'_He really must have been important to me_...'

Shinichi shook his head, he hadn't really kept close tabs on the other detective when he'd been human "Not really no" He gave a small smile in an attempt to lighten the other's mood "But he must have at least lived a long and fulfilling life" He added "After all, he did live to be over 80 which is pretty good in human standards"

Kaito nodded, feeling a little relieved from the other's words, though he still felt somewhat remorseful that things hadn't been mended between them "I'm really going to miss messing with him" He sighed, at Shinichi's raised brow he explained "For some reason I've always felt the need to mess with Hakuba" He smiled "I didn't really hate him, I just felt the urge to do it and it just felt right somehow"

* * *

Shinichi smirked, of course Kaito would have still messed with Hakuba, even with most of his memories missing. The action has probably been ingrained into Kaito's being for decades, especially if the two were once classmates. He actually sort of pitied those who'd been the former magician's classmates "That's probably because you liked to mess with him before you lost your memory" Shinichi snickered.

'_I wonder how many times he was given detention before the teachers gave up. I can't really see Kaito obediently sitting through detention'_

The indigo mer blinked in confusion "I messed with Hakuba back then as well?"

Shinichi nodded "Yeah, most likely. I can't really imagine you not messing with him" Kaito was a huge trickster as Kaitou Kid, some of that mischief had to have leaked or even originated from his civilian persona.

Indigos narrowed slightly as Kaito tilted his head to the side "We knew each other before?" He inquired, he wasn't really sure, but the other's words made him suspicious.

Azure met indigo as Shinich gave a small nod "Yeah" He replied, averting his gaze from the other "We didn't really spend a lot of time together" He paused for a moment before continuing "But we truly understood each other he finished. His eyes were burning a little but he didn't know why.

Indigos softened as Kaito swiftly caught him into a hug, letting out soft trilling noises "I'm sorry for hurting you" Kaito murmured into the other's neck.

Shinichi trembled "When you suddenly disappeared..." His voice wavered "I thought that you'd died..." Shinichi added, wondering why he felt like he was going to cry. He hadn't cried back then for Kaito, so why was he feeling like this right now when Kaito was obviously alive? He returned the hug.

'_I had lost the one person who truly understood me... Now he's back but he's not the same...'_

He missed his best friend.

* * *

Kaito felt his eyes sting, he felt guilty for forgetting Shinichi. It had obvious hurt the other.

'_Shinichi is strong, I want to be strong like that_'

The indigo mer loosened the hug a bit in order to meet the other's gaze "I will do my best to remember you Shinichi" He vowed, it was the least he could do for his friend. He didn't want what happened with Hakuba to happen to Shinichi. He gave a small reassuring smile "My speech has improved a lot since you've come here, so there's that at least"

'_Copying the way Shinichi speaks is fun_'

Shinichi returned the smile with one of his own "Yeah, I've noticed. It's actually kind of impressive"

Kaito beamed at the praise "Of course!" He grinned "I'm a very quick learner" He boasted, he liked it whenever Shinichi complimented him.

Shinichi couldn't help the small smile that tugged at his lips, he didn't doubt Kaito's words. The other really was a fast learner. "You know" He paused "To remember me, you'd have to talk about your scary dreams with me" He stated, remembering how they'd been in quite a lot of dangerous situations together in the past.

Kaito wilted a bit, a small grimace on his face "Why would our time together be scary?"

'_Shinichi isn't scary, so what happened to make our time together scary?_'

"That's something I think you should remember by yourself" Shinichi breathed, not wanting to influence or accidentally plant false memories into the other. He wanted the memories to be real, not fabricated substitutes "We had different takes on a lot of the situations" He added, remembering how Kid thought dodging bullets was fun. Shinichi didn't quite share that sentiment with Kid. He preferred to avoid bullets as much as possible.

Kaito frowned slightly but still nodded in understanding. He sort of understood Shinichi's reasoning, though he still didn't like it. He didn't want to wait in remembering the other. He wanted to remember him now "So then what will we do?" He inquired.

The azure mer shrugged, he wasn't really sure "We should just go about our day as normal and hope my presence triggers some of your memories" He smirked "And when you have a scary dream I'll try to help you understand them better" He replied, there wasn't really much else they could do besides that.

Kaito gave a small pout, that sounded like it could possibly take a while for his memories to return "If you say so..." He sighed before another thought came to mind "What'll happen after I regain my memories?" He asked, knowing that he wouldn't be able to return to his old life.

Shinichi blinked "Oh, we'll go to the ocean and live out the rest of our days there" He replied.


	17. Chapter 14 Unknown Fear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written September 8 2019  
Posted on Wattpad September 26 2019  
Posted here May 22 2020

"The ocean?" Kaito repeated, a small thrum of fear niggling him in the back of his mind. For some reason he didn't really like that idea, despite not even knowing what an ocean was.

Shinichi nodded "Yeah the ocean" He glanced around at his surroundings. They were nice but he knew he'd get sick of them eventually "We can't just spend the rest of our lives in this tank. Even if it's a really big and nice one" He breathed, they were both bound to eventually go stir crazy if they spent centuries here, especially after Kaito's memories returned. He held back a shiver at the thought of a stir crazy Kaitou Kid. Even without his tools he'd probably find some way to create mayhem.

'_With his intelligence he'd probably find some way to create water spreading dyes that don't wash off easily even in water._..'

Kaito bit his lip, a little unsure "What is the ocean?" He asked. If it was to be his future living space, he needed to know more about this place called 'The Ocean'.

Azures lit up with surprise at the question, he'd figured that Kaito already knew since he already seemed to have some aquatic knowledge. It was weird that Kaito knew things such as seaweed, shells, and water, yet didn't know about the ocean. It wasn't like he had anyone to tell him what those things were "The ocean is a huge boy of water filled with countless things to discover" He replied, becoming a little excited when he rethought their future. They could go places where humans can't, and maybe even withstand levels of underwater pressure that machines couldn't. There were so many potential discoveries for them.

'_If I can't be a detective anymore, becoming an underwater explorer seems like a good option. There are so many mysteries surrounding the ocean_..._ I want to solve them all_'

Indigos narrowed in confusion, that didn't sound too scary. So why was he still feeling a little uneasy about the prospect of heading into the ocean? "Bigger than this place?" At Shinichi's nod he became a little intrigued. Sure this place changed often and he sometimes got lost, but he'd always eventually memorise the layout until it changed once more "That seems fun" He admitted, pushing back his weird unknown fears.

Shinichi smirked "You'll love having the ability to roam the ocean, I just know it"

"Then why wasn't I put in the ocean when I first became a merman?" Kaito mused, if it was something so great, surely Hakuba would have put him there instead. They had apparently been close friends after all.

The azure mer winced "Hakuba was probably afraid that you'd get hurt or die" Shinichi paused, contemplating how to phrase his next sentence "He was under the impression that you weren't capable of caring for yourself out there. The ocean can be a very dangerous place" He replied, sort of understanding the blond's actions as he thought back to when he'd first met Kaito again.

'_He'd probably have died within a few days at least depending on which part of the ocean he was deposited in_...'

Kaito's face tinted pink "I'm capable!" He whined, crossing his arms across his chest.

Shinichi gave him a blank look "You tried to eat me"

"I-" He blushed "You were warm!" He huffed "Everything warm put in here is usually food" He trailed off "Since you were warm, I thought that you were some sort of new food" He defended.

The azure mer raised a sceptical brow "Why is it that everything warm placed in the tank is food?" He asked, already having a small suspicion.

Kaito looked away "I may have tried to eat a few things that I apparently can't" He muttered, for some reason he didn't like looking like a fool around Shinichi. It felt wrong.

Shinichi snorted "So you could have choked, poisoned yourself, or have gotten maimed if Hakuba had put you into the ocean all alone" He concluded. There were so many poisonous things in the ocean and unfortunately poisonous things are usually colourful. He could totally see Kaito being attracted to the pretty colours and dying. Though it was entirely possible that he'd see a cool creature and follow it, only for it to turn out to be a shark or something more dangerous.

Kaito pouted, unable to refute the other's claims.

* * *

Their morning meal had consisted of shrimp and clams, during of which Kaito had honestly surprised Shinichi with his skill at opening clams. Apparently Hakuba had spent a good amount of time teaching Kaito how to open them properly. After they'd finished eating they opted to just swim around with Kaito helping Shinichi to get used to his new body. It still felt weird for him to not have any legs but he was getting used to it. He'd also noticed that his teeth had sharpened somewhat like Kaito's.

"Shinichi!" Kaito beamed as he suddenly trapped the other within a firm hug. He was still feeling uneasy about their earlier conversation. Hugging Shinichi always made him feel better though.

'_I don't like feeling uneasy'_

"Kaito?" Shinichi frowned, having thought that the other had gotten over hugging him.

"I feel uneasy about the ocean, comfort me" He whined, nuzzling the older.

Shinichi raised a brow at the comment, nothing he'd mentioned about the ocean had been really bad. "Why do you feel uneasy?" He inquired.

"I don't know, I just am" The azure mer frowned at the response. Did the other have a bad experience regarding the ocean, and he's now subconsciously feeling the fear? He's have to ask Shinku to see if the other had heard any stories. He gave Kaito a reassuring pat on the back.

'_It's weird and I don't like it_'

"Don't worry, I'll protect you from anything that could hurt you" He soothed, not wanting Kaito to be fearful while not even understanding the fear. It was easier to fight a fear when one knew what they were going up against. If it was unknown, logic couldn't be used as easily to help. The unknown always added another level to any fear.


	18. Chapter 15 Learning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written September 9 2019  
Posted on Wattpad October 3 2019  
Posted here May 29 2020

Kaito let out a low but happy trill as he leaned into the other mer's warmth, he just couldn't get enough of hugging Shinichi. He also wasn't going to waste opportunities with the other like he had with the blond. A small frown made its way onto his lips "Are you going to die one day too?" He inquired, giving Shinichi a squeeze. He didn't want Shinichi to die, because then he'd be left all alone.

Azure softened as Shinichi gently carded his fingers through the younger's hair "Only if something really bad happens" He pulled away to meet Kaito's gaze with his own "Other than that we can't die from old age like humans" He breathed.

'_Old age_?'

Kaito blinked in confusion, not really knowing what the other meant "What do you mean by old age?" He asked, perplexed.

The other was silent for a moment before responding "Do you remember how Hakuba and the other humans seemed to look different after a while?" At Kaito's silent nod he continued "Well that was because they were getting older. Humans and other creatures can only live for a certain amount of time before dying"

Indigos narrowed "But not us?" He asked, taking note that the other hadn't included them in his explanation.

Shinichi smirked "Right, we're special and we will never age" He relied, unsurprised that Kaito had caught on.

A small smile bloomed upon the younger's face "So you'll never leave me all alone?" He asked, feeling giddy at the prospect.

"I'll do my best not to die" He gave Kaito a quick pat on the head "So you better do the same to not leave me all alone" He teased. Indigos widened, Kaito hadn't even thought of the possibility that he could be the one to die and leave Shinichi all alone.

_'Loneliness hurts! I've already hurt him so I won't do it again!_'

"I promise!" Kaito breathed, giving Shinichi a quick hug "I won't let you feel the pain that I've went through"

'_Hakuba and the other humans had been there, but he'd always felt at least a little lonely. With Shinichi who he could talk to, it's different_'

Shinichi felt a pang in his chest at the other's words "Thanks"

* * *

For the rest of the day, Shinichi spend time teaching Kaito the alphabet and simple phrases that would be useful to him such as; food, hi, thanks, no, yes, sorry, good, bad, stop, ow, hurt, and pain. He'd taught him the last three words just in case something injured Kaito and Shinichi was unable to translate for him. He'd lived a crazy enough life that he'd learned to always prepare for the worst. Thankfully Kaito had caught on quite quickly and had already mastered the alphabet. Now all he needed to do was learn how to spell words and make proper sentence structures. Though he seriously doubted that proper punctuation was necessary.

'_I wonder if his learning speed is due to his intelligence or the fact that he's technically relearning things. Maybe it's even a mixture of both_'

"You're really doing quite well Kaito" The azure mer praised, he'd quickly realised that the other responded well to praise. Which made sense considering that he'd always been a fan of attention.

Kaito flashed a cocky grin in response ""Of course!' He smirked "I have an awesome teacher and I'm also very talented!" Shinichi scoffed, rolling his eyes at the silly boasting. Kaito was acting more and more what he'd figured he used to be like as time went on. It was reassuring.

"Yes, of course" Shinichi breathed "How could I have ever forgotten" He finished with a teasing tone.

Kaito pouted, crossing his arms across his chest "You're mocking me!" He whined, he didn't like when the other mocked him. It felt like it should be the other way around for some reason.

Shinichi smirked, patting Kaito on the head intentionally like he would a dog. Indigos narrowed, he didn't know why, but being pet like that kinda pissed him off "Only a little, I've got to do it while I can" He teased.

'_He won't be nearly as easy to tease once he's back to normal, or at least as normal as he can get_'

Kaito pouted, still confused before swimming away to play with some pretty shells.

* * *

A small whine woke Shinichi up from his sleep, he glanced over towards the direction it came from and frowned. Kaito was curled up tightly on his seaweed bed, trembling slightly. He contemplated waking the other up but decided not to. Kaito was probably reliving some of his memories within his dreams, he didn't want to mess that up. Instead he swam over and cuddled the other, deciding to comfort him in what little ways he could without waking him up.

'_I hope Kaito remembers the dreams a little more clearly_'

He quickly fell asleep with the trembling magician nestled in his arms.

* * *

Fearful indigos blinked open, he'd had another one of those scary dreams again. Though this time he recognised Shinichi within them, despite the fact that the dream Shinichi had been a human. He glanced at the other's sleeping face, his fear immediately fading with the other's presence, and smiled softly. Shinichi hadn't been lying when he'd said that they'd known each other before.

_'Did he notice that I was having scary dreams and decide to comfort me?'_

The thought made him feel a little warm and fuzzy inside, he always liked when Shinichi was affectionate. He blinked and shook his head, that was an odd thought, Shinichi was almost always nice to him. He contemplated waking the other up but decided against it, instead he nuzzled further into the other's embrace to enjoy the warmth. He liked cuddles and this was the perfect opportunity to get some more. Maybe when Shinichi woke up he'd tell him about the dream that involved a large shiny white thing that caste a soft light on the both of them as they talked. He'd start of with the non-scary stuff before working into telling the other about the red splatters and loud noises. The red scared him.


	19. Chapter 16 Few Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written September 19 2019  
Posted on Wattpad October 9 2019  
Posted here June 5 2020

Shinichi woke up to a warmth nestled against his chest. He let out a soft yawn before blinking open his eyes, a small smile spread across his lips at Kaito's sleeping face. He looked so peaceful while sleeping. He didn't really know the exact time, but he figured that it was a good time for the both of them to wake up. The aquarium's lights were on after all, signifying that it was most likely daytime.

_'It's nice that we have the lights to give us a sense of time, it would be horrible if our waking schedule synced with the night. The ocean's way too dangerous at night_'

He gave the indigo mer a gentle nudge on the shoulder "Hey Kaito, wake up" He stated, giving the other another nudge. Kaito mumbled something indecipherable, nuzzling closer to Shinichi. Shinichi rolled his eyes and let out an exasperated breath. Of course the idiot had decided to be a pain to wake up. He jabbed Kaito in the ribs with his elbow, the other would survive that so it was fine.

"Gah!" Kaito let out a pained yelp, indigos flashing open at the sudden pain in his side "What was that for?!" He whined, a pained grimace on his face as he nursed his side with both hands. He knew it was Shinichi who'd hurt him because Shinichi was the only one around.

The azure mer smirked "You weren't waking up on time" Shinichi replied. That and it was a little fun to jab him. It was petty, but he liked dishing out payback, no matter how late it was.

Kaito gave a hurt pout, wincing slightly as he crossed his arms across his chest "That's no fair!" He whined, miffed that Shinichi hadn't been kind as he himself was "I woke up earlier and decided to let you sleep" He complained, it wasn't fair.

Azure met indigo "Did you have one of those dreams again?" He inquired, hoping that Kaito did. This Kaito was fine, but he wasn't the same.

'_I want him to at the very least remember me_'

The indigo mer gave a small nod in response "I saw both of us and a shiny white thing casting light on us" He replied, having forgotten a lot of the details but that was okay. He'd remembered that he'd dreamed of Shinichi. That was good, right?

Shinichi's heart fluttered within his chest. Kaito had remembered on of their many meetings "The white thing is called the moon" Shinichi informed, a wide grin on his face.

'_That's a good place to start remembering'_

Kaito blinked at the new information. That word sounded really familiar to him, as if it were highly important. His head was starting to hurt a bit, he looked towards Shinichi "Why is the moon important to me?" He inquired, the other had to know right? They'd been really close after all.

Azure softened at Kaito's vulnerable tone, the younger looked really confused. Shinichi gave Kaito a comforting hug "I can't really tell you the details" He paused "But I can tell you that it was a source of comfort and strength for you" He replied, a nostalgic smile lingering on his lips as he remembered Kid being silhouetted by the moon. The moon had done wonders for the thief's mystery levels.

'_I was in the middle of falling for him before he vanished_'

He'd been heartbroken thinking that the thief had left him. Eventually that heartbreak had turned into a dull sadness when he'd realized that the thief probably hadn't willingly left him. After that he had focused on Ran, developing his relationship with her. Though that in itself had ended in disaster when she'd died during childbirth. After that he'd given up on love. Everyone he'd truly and honestly loved had left him.

Shinichi snapped out of his musings due to Kaito, the younger had poked him on the cheek "You suddenly had a really sad look on your face" Kaito replied, frowning. He really didn't like it when Shinichi made that face.

"Sorry" He gave a small smile to reassure Kaito "I was just remembering some things myself" He replied, after Kaito had given him an inquisitive look "You're not the only one who remembers things" He smirked "I'm just better at it than you" He teased, wanting to lighten the atmosphere.

* * *

Kaito nodded, still a little concerned "I'll continue to remember you" He beamed "I'm sure of it!" He stated, indigos filled with determination.

'_A lot of Shinichi's sadness will go away once I fully remember him right? That means I have to do my best! A sad Shinichi is no good_'

Kaito pondered in thought for a moment, wracking his brain for any extra information from his dream. A sudden name popped into his head, indigos narrowed in confusion "I also remember a name" He frowned "But it confuses me" He stated.

_'Why would a person have two names? It doesn't make any sense_'

Shinichi raised a brow, intrigued "A name?" Kaito nodded, Shinichi wondered if the other had remembered his other alias of Edogawa Conan "What name is it?" He asked.

"Yeah, the name is Shin-chan" Shinichi sucked in a breath, Indigos narrowed as Kaito glanced over at Shinichi "But that makes no sense, you're Shinichi aren't you?" He asked, completely confused.

Azures burned slightly "Yeah I am" It was hard for him to keep his voice steady "But you also called me that to tease me" Shinichi replied, voice soft. He couldn't believe that Kaito had remembered that embarrassing nickname.

"That doesn't sound very nice" Kaito replied, disappointed in his past self. He gave the other an apologetic smile "I'll only call you Shinichi then"

'_How could I have been so mean?_'

Azure widened "No!" He blushed, lowering his voice "Call me Shin-chan, I have no problem with it" He replied. He used to have a problem with it, but that was until the idiot had gone and disappeared. Now he looked back at those memories with fondness.

Kaito was silent for a few moments as he studied Shinichi, he nodded, giving the older a warm smile "Okay Shin-chan!" He beamed, glad that the name seemed to cheer him up.


	20. Chapter 17 Mean (?) Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written September 25 2019  
Posted on Wattpad October 10 2019  
Posted here June 12 2020

After they had finished talking about memories and dreams, Shinichi continued to work with Kaito's writing skills. Technically there wouldn't be a proper reason for him to ever use them once they head to the ocean, but it was a nice way to subtly nudge at Kaito's subconscious memories. He also figured that Kaito would immediately regain his writing skills once he regained his memories.

_'There really isn't that much to do here? How has Kaito not gone stir crazy yet?_'

"Shin-chan" Kaito let out a soft whine "I don't like writing that word" The indigo mer let out a few sad trills to emphasise his point as he pointed at said word.

Shinichi raised a sceptical brow as he looked at the messily written word "Why don't you like fish?" A visible shudder ran through Kaito's frame at the vocalisation of the word "Kaito?!" Shinichi inquired, concerned about the other's health. Why did he shudder like that?

'_He didn't seem ill before... But our biology is probably a lot different than when we were humans_'

* * *

Kaito shook his head in an attempt to clear it, why were images of creepy eyed, tailed creatures popping into his head? He wasn't sure what they were, but the thought of them made him fearful. They actually seemed more scary than his scary dreams. He felt Shinichi's warm arms wrap around him and leaned into the embrace, a small whine escaping from the back of his throat "Shin-chan..." He whined into the crook of the azure mer's neck.

'_I didn't see anything until Shin-chan mentioned... That word... Are those scary things that word?_'

Azure gazed at the shivering teen with both confusion and concern, he didn't really understand why Kaito was acting like this. Nothing special had happened, he'd just read out the word that Kaito didn't like. His train of thought suddenly paused at that thought "Kaito?" He inquired softly, nuzzling the younger mer "Did that word I said scare you?" He asked, knowing that if he was right, he wouldn't need to explain what he meant. Kaito whimpered softly into Shinichi's neck before nodding.

* * *

'_Shit, he has ichtyophobia... And it's even affecting him with his memory loss. How will it affect him when he regains his memories?_'

It suddenly had a sick sort of sense in Shinichi's opinion, now he knew why the obvious choice of fishes weren't added to the tank. Kaito's friends had known about his fear. He gave the indigo mer a reassuring squeeze "Don't worry, you'll be okay with me" He soothed, gently carding his fingers through Kaito's hair "I won't let those things hurt you" He promised.

After a good long while, Kaito stopped trembling, much to Shinichi's relief "Thanks" Kaito breathed, a small blush tinting his cheeks. He was fine with nuzzling Shinichi before, so why did it feel a little strange?

Shinichi's gaze softened at the younger "It's okay Kaito. I'll just help you face your phobia" He kinda had to if Kaito was to ever survive in the ocean. He didn't know if high blood pressure from stress would affect Kaito like it would a human. He also didn't want to test that out.

'_As Kid he's faced fish before, so he should be able to get to a point where he could temporarily tolerate fish in small intervals... Plus, I think our main food source is actually fish but disguised._..'

He inwardly grimaced at the thought of having to force feed Kaito fish for the rest of his life. He figured that by doing so, it would be a great way to make the other resent him. He really didn't want that, a spiteful former Kaitou Kid didn't seem good for his own health, or sanity.

Kaito gave him a somewhat weak smile "What's a phobia?" The word seemed familiar to him, but he wasn't sure.

"It's sort of like an intense or irrational fear of something" Shinichi replied with a soft smile, giving Kaito a reassuring pat on the back "There's nothing to be ashamed of though" He would have never guessed that a person like Kaito would have a phobia, but he wouldn't fault him for being scared. It wasn't like Kaito could help the fact that he had ichtyophobia, he just had to learn how to live with it. The poor guy didn't really have a choice.

'_It's kinda ironic in a way, that Kaito was made into a merman. Making the guy with the phobia into a half fish person's just cruel. Though maybe it's a good thing that he forgot everything until I arrived? I'm not sure._..'

Indigos blinked in understanding "So the weird creatures I saw in my head were probably those..." He paused for a moment as he sought for the right words, a glint of fears parked within indigos as he continued"**_Finny things?_**" The way he spat out the last part with pure venom laced disgust made Shinichi raise a brow. He hadn't expected that kind of reaction from the other.

'_Okay, maybe his dislike of fish is deeper than I initially thought_...'

"If they pull out that sort of reaction from you, then most likely yes" Shinichi smirked, he wondered if he could use the fear to spark Kaito's memory since the fear seemed to be deeply ingrained into the younger. He knew it wasn't right, but he kinda wanted the original Kaito back.

'_Hopefully I'll be forgiven if it works_'

Kaito nodded "I hope to never see another one of those things ever again" He breathed, it was bad enough seeing them in his head. What if those things followed him and tried to touch him?! He shivered at the thought.

The azure me inwardly grimaced at the other's words. He felt a little guilty with how he'd been thinking about using Kaito's phobia to help him. It was a justified thought right? Especially if it brought back the old Kaito he'd initially befriended.

'_I'll do my best to make it up to him if it works, or if it doesn't_'


	21. Chapter 18 Guilt, Scare

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written October 1 2019  
Posted on Wattpad October 11 2019  
Posted here June 19 2020

Shinichi let out a sigh as he watched Shiku leave, he'd told the other of his plan to somehow scare the memories out of Kaito. The other had readily agreed, believing that the azure mer knew what he was doing. Shiku was supposed to be back with tons of fish later that day, there would be no going back from this. If it didn't work, he'd hopefully be able to trick Kaito into thinking that the arrival of the fish was due to some sort of freak accident. He didn't want to lose Kaito's trust.

'_I feel so guilty right now... But the plan needs to continue_'

He wanted Kaito to be himself again.

* * *

Kaito frowned as he looked at Shinichi, the other seemed to be upset about something, but he wasn't sure what "What's wrong Shin-chan?" He asked as he swam over. He didn't think that there were many reasons for the other to be sad.

'_I thought he'd be in a happier mood since I remembered a few more things_...'

The azure mer flashed Kaito a slightly weary smile, guilt tugging heavily at his conscious. He didn't want to hurt Kaito, yet his plan to get him back could possibly hurt him mentally "I just ate a little too fast and my stomach is hurting a bit" He lied, doing his best to sound sincere. Over the years he's had a lot of practice in lying to those close to him.

Indigos narrowed as a small frown settled an his lips. For some reason he didn't really believe Shinichi's words and he didn't know why, Shinichi didn't have any reason to lie to him. He nodded "I hate it when that happens" He fake sympathised, if Shinichi was lying, there had to be a really good reason for him to. Right? He gave the older a few reassuring head pats.

'_Shin-chan has been nothing but good to me ever since he arrived. I should trust him_'

Shinichi blushed faintly at being pet, it seemed weird now that Kaito was able to speak properly "Yeah" He agreed, stomach actually beginning to hurt a bit from his guilt "I'm going to rest a bit" He replied before heading over towards his makeshift bed. He'd feel even worse if Kaito kept on being nice to him while unaware of Shinichi's plans. It'd only make his guilt worse.

Kaito deflated a bit at Shinichi's words, a small pout lingering on his lips. That meant that there wouldn't be any more lessons today, he liked learning from Shinichi! It was fun and he was very good at it. It also made Shinichi look at him really fondly whenever he got something right "I'll cuddle with you to make you feel better then" He replied, swimming after Shinichi. If he can't learn from him, then he might as well cuddle with him.

'_Maybe cuddling will put him in a better mood_'

* * *

The azure mer paused, tempted to send the other away, in the end he decided not to "Okay" He breathed, he might as well take advantage of Kaito's closeness while he could. The younger may be too angry at him or too embarrassed later tonight depending on how things played out. He really hoped that at the very least that Kaito wouldn't be too angry with him.

'_I'm so sorry Kaito._..'

* * *

Kaito perked up from his cuddling with Shinichi, he'd heard the sound of Shiku opening part of the tank. He'd grown familiar with that particular sound over the years, mainly because it usually meant that he was getting a new toy or something. He felt Shinichi's arms wrap tighter around him. He glanced at the older, giving Shinichi a bright grin "That sound means that something fun is coming!" He trilled happily. It hadn't even been that long since the last time it had happened, there were good times.

'_I get to play with the new toys with Shin-chan!_'

His smile was quickly replaced with horror as a nightmarish creature passed through some seaweed and into his sight. Then another, and another, he tightly gripped the older for protection, a scream dying in his throat as his body began to violently tremble.

'**_F-finny things_**...'

* * *

Shinichi's eyes burned as he held Kaito closer to him, an endless fearful trill was coming out of the younger's mouth. The poor guy seemed terrified, unable to do anything but dig his nails deeper into Shinichi's side. He had to do this, he had to make Kaito face his biggest fear in the hopes that the shock was great enough to bring the real Kaito back to him "It's okay, it's okay" Shinichi soothed, burying his face into the crook of Kaito's neck as he carded the fingers of his right hand through Kaito's hair.

'_I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Kaito.._.'

Kaito tried to say something but it came out as nothing more than a fear filled warble and sob, as more and more fish seemed to be swimming around them. He violently flinched when something disgustingly slimy brushed against his tail, making Kaito tuck it even tighter against himself.

'_I'm so sorry._..'

Shinichi clenched his teeth, closing his eyes. He felt like the scummiest person on earth right now. He continued to whisper reassurances to the younger as he hugged him tighter. This was a bad idea, what had he been thinking?! He'd underestimated exactly how bad of a reaction Kaito would have, the guy was too terrified to even swim away. A horrible thought suddenly came to him, how would they get rid of the fish? Would Kaito be a little better with them once he regained his memory? He hoped so, he didn't even want to think about what would happen if his memory didn't return.

The small whines were suddenly beginning to sound softer and softer, Shinichi looked at Kaito with concern when he felt the younger go limp. Kaito had fainted. He gently put the younger onto the bed before heading towards where Shiku would be. They needed to get rid of the fish before Kaito woke up. The poor guy has already been through enough.


	22. Chapter 19 Happiness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written October 3 2019  
Posted on Wattpad October 15 2019  
Posted here June 26 2020

"You!" Shinichi flinched at the unexpected harsh tone, he turned around and was met with Kaito. A very angry looking Kaito. Indigos were glaring at the azure mer in rage "How could you do that to me?!" Kaito shrieked, clasping his arms protectively across his chest as he suppressed a full body shudder.

'_He knew I had a phobia of those things... Yet he still_...'

Shinichi gave Kaito an uneasy smile in response "I don't know what you're talking about" He replied, hoping that the other wouldn't see through the lie. His plan seemed to have failed.

Kaito scoffed, pointing an accusatory finger at the other "Nice try _Meitantei" _He let out an angry breath, Shinichi froze, eyes wide with shock. Kaito carried on, having looked away and hadn't noticed Shinichi's reaction "I'm not an idiot!" He huffed "There's no way that those..." He trailed off as a small shiver ran down his spine at the thought of those dreaded creatures "...Things" He spat out the word with distaste "Could come in here by themselves"

'_How could Shin-chan have done something so awful to me?!_'

After a few moments of silence, the indigo mer turned towards him with a raised brow "Well?" He stated before pausing. Why was Shinichi frozen like that? "Meitantei?" He breathed, tilting his head to the side in confusion.

* * *

'_I haven't told him that name... He's also acting differently.._.'

Shinichi's eyes began to burn as a choked sob escaped from his lips, he tackled the magician "Kid?" He asked, his voice wobbly from his sobs as he latched onto the other. He hadn't told the new Kaito about Kaitou Kid.

'_If he responds... My Kaito is back_...'

Kaito frowned in confusion at Shinichi's actions "You're acting strange" He breathed before freezing as the memories of the last few days and the years before suddenly came back to him. He clutched onto the others as things suddenly began making sense. He'd been wondering why the hell both he and the meitantei were half monsters "Shit..." He breathed, his eyes starting to burn. His anger faded as he gently hugged the other "I'm sorry for forgetting you Shin-chan" He breathed, guilt slamming into him. He'd hurt everyone he cared about, Aoko, Saguru, and even Shinichi had been hurt. All because he had forgotten about them.

'_Kaito!_'

"I missed you so much!" Shinichi sobbed "You were there, but you also weren't" He replied softly. He'd been able to reign in his hurt at the start, but he'd quickly lost his nerve. Being around the new Kaito had begun to hurt because he was similar, but not the same person he'd grown close to and confided in.

* * *

The magician nodded, now truly understanding why Aoko and Saguru had always seemed sad whenever they'd visited or checked up on him "Well I'm here now" He replied softly before gritting his teeth. It was too late to fix things with Aoko and Saguru, He flashed Shinichi a reassuring smile. But it wasn't too late to fix things with Shinichi. They had all of eternity if what he remembered was correct "I won't forget you ever again" He vowed, not wanting to harm the other like that ever again. Once was enough.

'_I guess I can forgive him for unleashing those creatures on me... Shin-chan must have been desperate if he did that. He's not the kind of person do exploit others fears like that_'

Shinichi sniffled, elation filling him at Kaito's words "If you do, I'll kill you" He muttered darkly, he couldn't go through that again.

A cocky smirk tugged at Kaito's lips "Oh, so I affect the Meitantei in such a way that murder is viable?" His smirk morphed into his trademark Kid grin "I'm flattered" He teased.

"Yeah, you should be proud" Shinichi breathed "You stole my heart decades ago and still kept your hold on it" Kaito froze, his face flushing. The sleuth's eyes gleamed mischievously "Even after you tried to eat me and showed me your dick, I still love you despite your stupidity" He leaned in and gave Kaito a quick kiss on the lips. He'd waited and lost out on his chance before, he refused to let that happen again. Kaito was his.

'_WHAT?!?!_'

Kaito pulled away, burying his face in his hands in embarrassment. How could Shinichi make such a sweet yet insulting confession like that?! His face reddened further as he remembered all of the stupid things he's done throughout the years "God..." The magician breathed, mortified.

Azure softened "It's fine if you don't feel that way right now" He had plenty of time to win Kaito's heart "I just wanted you to know my intentions" His gaze dimmed slightly "I missed my chance last time so I'm telling you while I can" Shinichi finished. Kaito's heart almost broke at the other's pained tone. He really must have hurt Shinichi a lot, both when he disappeared, and when Shinichi found him.

'_Even after all this time_...'

His memories with Shinichi didn't seem that long ago to him, but he knew that wasn't the case of Shinichi. He swam a little closer to the older "If you'll really have me" He blushed, feeling shy for some reason "Then I'd like to be with you" He breathed, a little happy that the crush he'd had on Shinichi before he'd lost his memories was reciprocated "Just um..." His gaze darted to the ground "No sex" He'd make out with the guy, but it would just feel wrong to have sex with him with how they were. Not to mention he didn't even know how that would even work.

Shinichi snorted, having not expected that "I can agree with that" He grinned, hugging his magician. Glad to have _his_ Kaito back "I guess we should inform Shiku that he can put us in the ocean now" He felt Kaito shiver within his hold and gave him a reassuring nuzzle "Don't worry, I'll protect you from all the scary finny things" He cooed.

'_The ocean... The home of all evil._..'

"Shin-chan..." Kaito let out a small wail, he didn't want to go to the ocean.


	23. Epilogue 2 True End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written October 3 2019  
Posted on Wattpad October 17 2019  
Posted here July 3 2020

**Year 2175**

Saguru sighed as he gazed at the open sea, he'd turned 20 a few months ago. That day was also the day when he remembered his past life, the memories just seemed so fresh in his mind. He missed Aoko, and Kaito and absently wondered if he was the only one to have a second chance at life.

'_I love Aoko too dearly, I doubt I'll find love in this life if she hasn't been reborn as well_...'

"Oh?" His thoughts paused at the familiar voice "It seems as if we've all been drawn here in this life" He turned around to see Akako, His eyes widened when Aoko peeked out from behind the red witch with a small smile.

"Aoko!" He breathed, running up to his love and hugging her tightly.

Aoko smiled, returning the hug "Aoko is happy to see you again Saguru" She was so happy that Saguru had been brought back as well.

"I cast a spell on us" Akako stated, snagging the two lovebird's attention "We will all continuously reincarnate and remember our past lives once we reach the age of 20" She paused momentarily to allow her words to seep in "I chose 20 so that we won't be alienated growing up"

Aoko's eyes gleamed with excitement as she looked around "Where's Kaito?!" She missed him and wanted to see her best friend as himself again. t'd been too painful to visit him much in her past life, something she sorely regretted.

The blond glanced around as well, though he was a little wary of why the magician had yet to reveal himself to them "Yes, where is he?" Saguru inquired.

Red eyes gleamed "Kaito wasn't reincarnated like us" Akako replied, taking in some amusement from the other's disappointed faces. It was technically the truth. One can't reincarnate without dying first. She motioned towards a beach house a little ways away from their current location, it was made half over the ocean "Why don't we continue our talk there?" A wry smirk played on her lips "We were all drawn here for a reason after all"

* * *

"Kaito, you really shouldn't do it" Shinichi chided as he watched his magician hide behind some aquatic foliage. They'd been informed by Akako of the other's arrivals and the magician was set on messing with them.

'_At least we'll be able to speak with them_'

It had taken a long time, but they eventually relearned the human language by listening then using their perfect pitch to mimic the language. It didn't feel like they were speaking like humans, but they knew they were.

"But Shin-chan..." Kaito whined before suddenly stilling. Footsteps were approaching, his victims would be here soon.

* * *

Saguru glanced around the house with intrigue, it was like it was half aquarium with how topless tanks and connective channels ran through the house. It would have been perfect for Kaito. His mood darkened at the thought of his friendly rival.

'_It's not fair that we get a second chance but he doesn't... Kaito deserves one more than anyone_'

Something soggy suddenly made contact with his face, startling him and making him fall over. A hauntingly familiar snicker echoed throughout the house "Goal!" Kaito cheered, popping his upper body out from one of the tanks a small machine was around his neck, covering his gills. As long as Kaito or Shinichi popped underwater at least every five minutes, they wouldn't suffocate. Shinichi face palmed from behind a decorative rock.

* * *

'_I missed making people have that face_'

Saguru and Aoko gaped in shock at the magician, Kaito as acting like Kaito, yet he was clearly still a merman.

Aoko was the first to break out of her shock "Kaito!" tears streamed down her face as she ran up to Kaito and tackled him, and effectively falling into the water having not thought things through. The magician quickly brought her head above the water.

"Geez Ahoko" Kaito sighed as Aoko began to cough up water "Even after all these years you're still a klutzy person. He chided, a wide grin on his face as he gave her a hug. He'd missed her so much.

'_I'm so glad that she's the same as before_'

"Bakaito!" Aoko huffed angry, but not wanting to remove herself from the hug.

Saguru collected himself and walked up to the tank, he couldn't help but smile. His rival and friend was back "How?" He breathed, Akako was supposed to end Kaito's life for his own protection.

"I helped him remember" Shinichi stated, revealing himself, he held out a hand towards the blond "Kudo Shinichi, Meitantei" Both Aoko and Saguru shared shocked looks, everyone had heard of the Detective of the East "Kaito wasn't as lost as we thought, he just needed someone who both knew and understood him" He explained. Kaito grinned, giving Shinichi a peck on the cheek as he wrapped his arms around his shoulders and leaned against him.

The blond shook the offered hand "You have my thanks for bringing Kaito back" He breathed, words weren't enough to describe his gratitude towards the other.

Kaito grinned "Shin-chan would get along with you perfectly Saguru" He replied. Kaito figured that they were all past the point of using last names after all they've been through.

Shinichi smirked "Yeah, I'm sure we would" Kaito suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, making him distance himself from Shinichi "We can tell each other about all of the stupid things Kaito has done" He snickered "Even before losing his memories he's done a lot of stupid things, the same with after regaining them" He breathed.

'_The traitor!_'

The magician looked at his boyfriend in horror "Shin-chan!" He wailed, his face slightly pink "You promised not to tell anyone"

Gold gleamed at the offer "I would love to share some stories later with you" Since Kaito was himself, blackmail was fair game. Aoko suddenly sneezed, drawing attention to herself "But first I'd like to make sure Aoko gets taken care of" He didn't want her to catch a cold.

Kaito grinned as he helped Aoko out of the tank, handing her to Saguru. He knew the blond would care for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was quite the interesting story to write, especially since it was supposed to have ended on part 5
> 
> What did you think of this?


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